


and on this night, and in this light, i think i'm falling

by onacoldnight



Category: VIXX
Genre: AU, Entertainment Companies, M/M, With a Little Angst on the Side, but this is romance, ceo lee jaehwan, fluff?, high-end crush, lots of cameos, lots of it i swear, self indulgent lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-10
Updated: 2017-06-08
Packaged: 2018-10-30 08:32:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 25,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10873062
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onacoldnight/pseuds/onacoldnight
Summary: jaehwan thinks he has everything – he can get anything he wants with just a snap of his fingers – but sanghyuk proves him wrong. completely wrong.





	1. I

**Author's Note:**

> this is based on south korean-chinese web drama high-end crush, with jung ilwoo and jin seyeon as main leads. the story is really nice, has inspired me to write an au because i want a cocky ceo lee jaehwan (and also the title is from the 1975's song, falling for you)

_He’s crazy._

“I really don’t get it why people are so naïve. Unrequited love? Crush? You like the person, then tell them.” Jaehwan scoffs, putting his feet on the coffee table that makes Hakyeon glare at him. He pretends not to notice it though, as he continues on his ramble. “It’s so tiring receiving scripts that are all about fools in love and shit.”

“When you fall in love, you will realize.” Hakyeon says, closing the clipboard so Jaehwan can’t see what he wrote in his records. He doesn’t even know why he still wastes his time listening to his arrogant best friend talk about his arrogance. And he doesn’t have any idea why Jaehwan still spends his money to pay for the consultation fees when he obviously doesn’t need any help from him. “What do you want to know, Jaehwan. I’m hungry and my lunch break will start in five minutes.”

Jaehwan stands up and now sits on the table, and Hakyeon gasps because he thought it was going to break. Jaehwan leans forward, looks at him with an annoying smirk on his face. “I feel pessimistic about everything in general, and I don’t know why.”

Hakyeon pinches the bridge of his nose, and he knows that a headache will come up if he lets Jaehwan stay with him for another minute. “Get out of my office, Jaehwan –”

A phone call blares in the office, and Hakyeon mentally thanks the heavens and every deity for it. It is a phone call that Jaehwan has to answer, so urgent that he has to leave his office and Hakyeon can finally eat in peace –

Jaehwan turns off his phone and Hakyeon wants to cry.

“Now, tell me what’s wrong with me, Doctor Cha?”

  

***

 

Jaehwan’s phone rings again as he drives out of the parking lot of the hospital, and he sighs when he sees Wonshik’s photo on the incoming call. He puts an earphone and answers the call.

“What do you want?”

“Why aren’t you answering, Sir?” Wonshik asks on the other line, and he sounds out of breath, like he ran several miles. “I’ve been calling you but you turned off your phone!”

“Do you decide on when I will answer your call?”

“No Sir, but –”

“So why are you scolding me for not answering my phone?”

“I’m not scolding you, Sir –”

“Are you saying that I’m wrong?”

“Sir, wait listen to me –”

“Answer my fucking question, Wonshik.”

“Taekwoon hyung escaped from the guards again! The rehearsal starts in less than an hour!”

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner!” Jaehwan shouts, swerving to do a u-turn.

“I kept on calling you for hours but you never answered my calls!”

“Are you shouting at me, Kim Wonshik?!”

There’s a sigh, then, “No, Sir –”

Jaehwan ends the call, curses out loud and steps on the gas. He has to see Taekwoon, and scare the living daylights out of Wonshik and the guards so that they will learn their lesson. He parks his car in front of Taekwoon’s favorite café, knowing that he is just around the area. He walks along the sidewalk, and not too long after, he sees a familiar figure with a white beanie on his head, standing in the crowd, like they’re watching something. As soon as he gets nearer, he hears someone singing, and it pulls him closer.

Jaehwan puts his hand on Taekwoon’s shoulder, peeking from his shoulder to see a person busking. There’s a bowl on the ground, in front of the singer, half-filled with coins and bills. “Taekwoon.”

Taekwoon turns around, sipping from a straw, and sighs when he sees him. “I still have thirty minutes and it’s just a rehearsal.”

Jaehwan calls Wonshik back, and he’s answered after one ring. “We’re here at Taekwoon’s favorite café, how clever of you to not look for him here first before running around the city. Get here in five minutes or else you’re all dead.”

He crosses his arms across his chest, watching Taekwoon claps along with the audience as the busker plays his guitar and sings. The singer’s voice is raw, but gentle. And he’s also handsome, Jaehwan notes to himself. He furrows his eyebrows, completely intrigued by the singer. Maybe a little training will make him wonderful, as his Midas touch will take effect, and he will be famous around the world.

“Sir!” Wonshik puts his hands on his waist, panting. The other guards follow after him, also running out of breath. “We’re sorry!”

Jaehwan nudges Taekwoon, and the latter sighs again before going with them. Jaehwan gives them one last piercing glare at the guards before they scurry away. Jaehwan hears a loud ‘thank you!’ and claps from behind, and he turns back to the busker and sees that he’s finished, the crowd slowly dispersing after dropping money on his little bowl.

The singer is cleaning the place up, putting his guitar back on its case, covers his bowl with a lid to put it on his bag, and then picks up litter on the ground. Jaehwan watches him, and waits until he gets the other’s attention. It’s when he straightens up and meets Jaehwan’s eyes.

Jaehwan notices that he’s a little taller than him, and it doesn’t make him feel intimidated, as Wonshik and Taekwoon are a little bit taller than him too.

“Is there something you need?” the singer asks politely, while he adjusts the straps of his backpack on his shoulders.

Jaehwan doesn’t beat around the bush. He believes it is just a waste of time, and time is gold, and gold is money. “Have you heard of JLee Entertainment?”

“Uh, no.” he says, and he gives Jaehwan a little bow before walking away from him.

Jaehwan’s eyes widen, no one has rejected him. And everybody knows his company. He’s everywhere, his company is the home of famous idols and actors, he builds stars, and he makes them stay there for a very long time. Thousands of hopefuls come to him to audition every month, and to be discovered in the streets by Lee Jaehwan is considered to be a miracle. The only one he recruited outside his company is Taekwoon. And this singer should grab the opportunity because he probably won’t get that anywhere.

Jaehwan speed-walks (he doesn’t run, not very Jaehwan-like), his temper rising, and grabs the singer’s arm when he reaches him. “Do you think you’re really that special?”

There’s a scowl on the other’s face and he shrugs his arm off Jaehwan’s hand. “If I’m not, then why are you wasting your time talking to me right now?”

“I can make you famous.” Jaehwan says, and he points at Taekwoon’s face on the billboard. “Do you know him? I can put your face on billboards too.”

“I don’t know him, and I’m not interested.”

“You think so highly of yourself, huh?”

“Stop talking to me, Mister. I have no plans of being famous.” the singer says calmly this time, because obviously Jaehwan looks very pissed. “Now if you will excuse me, I will leave.”

He walks away from Jaehwan, again, and this time Jaehwan doesn’t follow him. The singer hurt his pride, thinking he’s above others, most especially him. But he doesn’t easily give up from a fight. He will make this person realize how much he lost, how much he needed a person like Jaehwan to grow further as a singer.

Jaehwan rolls his eyes, and goes back to his car. This won’t be the last time they would be seeing each other, and the next time will be his win on this self-declared war, he’s sure of it.

  

***

 

Jaehwan stomps his way to his office, a jittery Wonshik behind him. He turns around abruptly, his assistant almost colliding with him.

“Do you remember the busker from yesterday?”

Wonshik blinks, then upon realization, he nods. “Yes, Sir. I know him, I saw him perform last month. He’s a good singer, the audience loved him. Though there is nothing special about him.”

Jaehwan narrows his eyes. That was what he thought before. But there’s something in him that Jaehwan can’t easily let go. And he’s really curious. And also, he needs to get back on him. “I want him to sign a contract with us.”

“Okay – okay, what?” Wonshik splutters. Jaehwan takes the documents he needs to sign on from him and sits on his chair. “You want him to sign a contract with us?”

“You didn’t hear me?”

“I heard you, Sir.” Wonshik says. “But –”

“Are you questioning me, Wonshik?” Jaehwan asks, looking up at him with a devilish smile on his face. Wonshik shakes his head, so he proceeds on signing. “Then do a background check on him.”

“Yes, Sir.” Wonshik takes back the documents and leaves his office. Jaehwan grabs his phone and calls Hakyeon.

“Why are you calling, Jaehwan? Do you know I’m working?”

“Do you know that I also pay for consultations done in phone calls?”

“I don’t know there is something like that.”

“There is, ask the administrator about it.” he says, then he hears shuffling.

“Now what do you want?”

“Someone rejected my offer. He said he didn’t want to be famous.” Jaehwan says. He is damn sure that Hakyeon is laughing silently on the other line, and he huffs, “Stop laughing at me.”

“I’m maintaining my professionalism, Lee Jaehwan. Because you’re paying my time.” Hakyeon replies, and he doesn’t sound like he means it. “You just sound so defeated.”

“I don’t sound defeated!”

“Not everyone wants to be famous.”

“I don’t think so.” Jaehwan says. “You wanted to become an idol but your parents pulled you out a month after you started training.”

“Stop bringing that up, Jaehwan. I don’t even know why I still talk to you.”

“Because I’m your best friend and you love me so much and you –”

“Back to the topic.” Hakyeon cuts him off. “Not everyone shares the same thought as yours. Some people want to stay away from that raucous lifestyle. Anyway, don’t bother that person just because he rejected you. You can never get everything you want in this world. Stop before he takes legal actions against you.”

Jaehwan slams his hand on his table. “He can’t. He will lose. I’m powerful. I have lots of connections.”

“I think you found it, Jaehwan.” Hakyeon says, before turning off the call.

Jaehwan frowns while looking at his phone screen, not even getting Hakyeon’s cryptic message. Hakyeon is getting weirder and weirder these days.

  

***

 

“Ah, his name is Sanghyuk.” Taekwoon says in the middle of replying to his fans’ tweets.

“Sanghyuk?”

“That is what he said when he introduced himself.”

“Nothing more?” Jaehwan pokes his side, and Taekwoon jerks to avoid him.

“Nothing more, so shut up.”

“You can’t make me, your employer, shut up.” Jaehwan says, pointing at himself. Taekwoon just snorts at him.

“Why are you so interested at him? Do you like him?”

He almost falls from his million-won couch. “What the fuck are you talking about.”

“Wonshik said you want to recruit him, and you instructed him to do a background check.” Taekwoon tilts his head, and looks at Jaehwan with shit-eating grin on his face that makes him want to melt on his spot. But of course he doesn’t let the older know that he’s somewhat intimidated by his gaze because he’s insufferable when he finds out that he has cornered him. “So? Do you like him?”

Jaehwan closes his eyes for a moment to avoid bursting out and scaring the shit out of the trainees in the practice room. “I don’t like him, okay. I just think he will make it big, with proper training. You should know that, I discovered you on the streets before.”

Taekwoon shrugs. He doesn’t really look convinced, but Jaehwan has no time to defend himself any more. “Whatever you say. Good luck with him, I guess. I’m more than enthusiastic to welcome a new family member.”

 

***

 

“His name is Han Sanghyuk, living alone on the seas in the south –”

“Seas? Is he a merman or something?”

“No, Sir. I mean, he lives by the shore.” Wonshik clarifies. He clears his throat when Jaehwan lets him continue. “He’s been living there all his life, and alone after his grandmother died. No electricity, no technology.”

“Who on earth even lives there, with no electricity and techonology.”

“Apparently, Han Sanghyuk.” Wonshik says, matter-of-factly. Jaehwan glares at him because of that, and he quickly ducks his head. “I’m sorry, Sir.”

“Go ahead.”

“And also he’s friends with Lee Hongbin, the top singer from Silver Light Entertainment, which is the number one rival of our company and is owned by Seo Eunkwang, your number one rival.”

Jaehwan’s eyes widen. No, it can’t be. If Lee Hongbin is friends with Han Sanghyuk, then he probably knows what Sanghyuk is capable of. He grits his teeth. “How? Wait, shit – have they already tried recruiting him?”

“Based on my sources, he became friends with Hongbin after helping him with pushing his car when it stopped in the middle of the highway. And yes, they tried recruiting him for their company but he declined.”

Jaehwan feels the corners of is lips curling up. “Cancel all my schedules for today. I have to go.”

“Where are you going, Sir?” Wonshik asks, and he steps back when Jaehwan stands up from his seat and grabs his coat hanging from behind his chair.

Jaehwan just winks at him as an answer before slamming his door shut. He still has to dig a rough diamond from the ground.


	2. II

It was a long drive, but patience is a virtue. Jaehwan parks his sports car in front of a small store, and since the sun is a bit harsh today, he puts on his designer sunglasses and checks himself on the mirror before stepping out. There is an old woman sitting in front of what he assumes is her store, fanning herself with a newspaper.

“Good afternoon.” he greets, and looks around. There are lots of trees, lots and lots of trees, probably leading to a forest. He can also smell the sea, and perhaps Han Sanghyuk is just near here. The woman looks up at him with a surprised look on her face. “May I ask if you know Han Sanghyuk?”

“Han Sanghyuk?” the woman says, finally waking up from her stupor. “Ah, Sanghyukkie? The cute, tall boy who sings!”

 “Ah yes. That Sanghyuk.” Jaehwan confirms. “Do you know where he is?”

 “Sanghyukkie lives by the shore. Poor guy has been living alone for years. If you want to talk to him, then you have to go through the forest.”

 “The forest?” Jaehwan asks, pointing at the forest on his side. No way, the forest looks very dense and his expensive car won’t even make it halfway. “Are there any shortcuts?”

 “Sorry to say, handsome guy, there is no shortcuts. You really have to go through the forest if you want to see him. Well, if you don’t really want to go, then I can relay your message –”

 “No, no it’s fine. I need to talk to him personally.” Jaehwan waves his hand. He groans mentally and pats his car before saying thanks to the old woman.

 He takes a deep breath before entering the forest. This better should have a positive result, if he has to go all the way just to convince Sanghyuk to join his company.

 

***

 

“What the fuck?” Jaehwan mutters under his breath, upon reaching the same spot for the fourth time after wandering around the forest. He hates to admit but it looks like he’s lost. He entered the forest at freaking two o’ clock in the afternoon and now it’s five and the sky is beginning to turn dark. There is no signal, and even if it has, the navigation app on his phone doesn’t even know where the hell he is right now.

Maybe he is going to die here in the forest, with no water, and defenseless. And along the way he saw a wild boar and a snake, and he quickly hid as he might get attacked. All he wants to do now is to cry, or probably write a note on his phone for his family to read saying that he lived a perfect life.

He sits on the grass, his back against a tree. The skies are now dark, and he’s afraid he has to stay awake for the whole night before trying to walk again. Now, he’s beginning to regret going to Han Sanghyuk. He curses out loud, and covers his face with his hands. If he’s going to survive, he will never tell anyone this very embarrassing moment of his life, especially to Hakyeon.

Jaehwan suddenly hears the rustling of leaves on the ground, and he scoots closer to the tree, wishing he can camouflage, but he’s wearing very bright blue coat and dress pants and it doesn’t really blend well to the tree’s bark. He swallows, not really ready to fight for his life, and he uses the torch of his phone to see well. And now he hears footsteps, and he tries not to scream, but it gets closer and closer to him that he should do something before his life ends there.

He points the light at the spot where the footsteps are coming from, and the last thing he hears before he passes out is his own ear-piercing scream.

  

***

 

“Jaehwanie finally saw his match.” Hakyeon says, while tearing up the table napkins on the fast food chain they’re at. The waiter glares at him. “You remember what I told you when you went to me complaining about his attitude problem?”

“There is still something he can never have and that is when he will realize.” Taekwoon replies, eyeing the fries and burgers Hakyeon is eating right now. “Hey, come on let me have just one bite.”

“No. You said you have to maintain your abs, and these are abs-reducing food.” Hakyeon says, pulling his food away from Taekwoon. “Anyway, you’re right. And he finally found it. Knowing him, he’s probably shaking with rage right now.”

  

***

 

“Georgia, stop licking his face!”

Jaehwan groans, feeling something wet on his face. He opens his eyes and he lets out another scream when he sees a big dog licking his cheek. “Get out of my face – holy fuck –”

“Georgia, that’s enough.” there’s another voice, then the dog is taken away from his lap. Jaehwan wipes the saliva from his face. “Are you okay?”

Jaehwan sits up, and looks around just to see a small room with lots of candles lighting the whole place up. He hears waves crashing onto the shore, and somehow it soothes his nerves. But still, the room seems so eerie and he can’t help the goosebumps from rising on his skin. His eyes finally lands on the person with a familiar voice, and he nods stiffly. “Where am I?”

“You’re in my house.” Sanghyuk says. “You passed out in the forest.”

“Yes, I passed out and it’s your fault. You scared the shit out of me. Why are you even living here?” Jaehwan grunts, and grabs his phone from beside the pillow. Still no signal.

“It’s not my fault that you came all the way here just to talk to me.” Sanghyuk says indignantly. “The old woman told me you’re looking for me.”

“Yes, I’m looking for you.”

“Mister, if you’re here to convince me to accept your proposal, then you’re just wasting your time.”

“Okay, let’s talk this out, sit down.” Jaehwan motions for him to sit down in front of him. Fortunately, Sanghyuk complies, letting his dog walk around the room and sit beside Jaehwan. “I will tell you something that will make you agree.”

Sanghyuk doesn’t respond, so Jaehwan takes that as a cue to continue.

“After signing up with our company, you will get to stay on one of the units in my condominium. You’re also be getting free transportation, aside from your monthly allowance, and –”

“I’m not interested.” Sanghyuk cuts him off. He’s looking down on his nails that make him look so uninterested and that Jaehwan is not worth his time. “I will not leave this house just because you’re giving me convenience. I’m not like the other people out there. Try harder.”

“You know, you can’t just get this opportunity somewhere.” Jaehwan points out, slamming his fist on the wooden floor to make Sanghyuk understand his point. “Tell me what Hongbin’s company offered you, I’ll give you more than that.”

“How the hell did you know about that?” Sanghyuk puts his palm on his forehead. “No, wait – how much do you know about me?”

“Enough that I know your real name, your address and your friendship with Lee Hongbin.”

“Oh my god.” Sanghyuk says frustratingly, pulling on his hair. “You’re impossible.”

Jaehwan is seconds from shouting at his face, but he has to maintain his composure so that Sanghyuk won’t kick him out of his house. “I can make impossible things possible for you, Sanghyuk.”

“I’ve told you already that I don’t want to be famous. Find someone who is more than willing to agree with you.” Sanghyuk says, standing up. “Just sleep, and after the sun rises, please leave.”

Sanghyuk is about to slide the door shut when Jaehwan suddenly calls him again. “Can you please not leave the room? Your place is scary.”

Sanghyuk rolls his eyes, but still leaving Jaehwan in the scary room. One candle suddenly lost its flame and he yelps, scooting backwards until his back meets the cold wall. He shudders in fear. He’s definitely not getting any sleep tonight. “HAN SANGHYUK!”

  

***

 

Jaehwan bumps onto the wall beside him, and from what he knows his bed isn’t situated against the wall. And also his mattress doesn’t feel as soft as he remembered, like the top quality he bought abroad. He opens his eyes a little, and he screams when he realizes that he’s not in his room. He rolls on the floor away from the wall, until he realizes again that he just roped his upper body with a twine. He rolls back to the wall again to free himself, and sits up to remove the twine wrapped around his wrist.

“You look ridiculous.”

Jaehwan looks up and glares at Sanghyuk, throwing the twine at him. It only lands on the other’s feet. “What is this? Why did you tie me up?”

“You really forgot? You were so scared last night that you had to ask me to tie your wrist with this and the other end on mine.” Sanghyuk says, picking up the offended object. “You kept on pulling and pulling that I lost sleep.”

Jaehwan rubs his eyes. He has done too many ridiculous things for less than 24 hours that it makes him very positive that he will get a good result from it.

“Please wash yourself first. There’s clean water at the backyard.” Sanghyuk says, pushing a clean white towel at him, and leaves. Jaehwan takes the towel and proceeds to go out.

“Ugh, my skin’s beginning to dry. I should go to my dermatologist after this.” Jaehwan complains to himself, while washing his whole face with water. Sanghyuk’s dog, aka Georgia, approaches him and sits down, watching him. He smiles. “Hey, is this your first time seeing a handsome man?”

“Breakfast is ready.” Sanghyuk calls, and Jaehwan pats the dog’s head before going back inside.

Sanghyuk has prepared too many side dishes that he’s surprised. Maybe he is welcome after all. He picks up a pickled radish with his chopsticks and he closes his eyes because damn, that is delicious. He then scoops rice from his bowl. He’s so hungry since he didn’t get to eat last night. “Wow, this is delicious.”

“Thanks.” Sanghyuk replies, and he begins to eat. “I learned cooking from my grandma.”

“Maybe you can go with me back to Seoul and cook for me again.” He says, but he never gets a reply. He looks up and sees Sanghyuk too busy eating his own share. He pouts. “Thank you for the food. I will eat well.”

 

***

  

“Hey, regarding the contract.”

Sanghyuk still doesn’t give him a reply, too busy taking out the clothes from the clothesline.

“Sanghyuk.” Jaehwan calls once again, helping him on his chore. Sanghyuk lets him, but doesn’t say anything.

After bringing the laundry inside the house, Sanghyuk goes back outside to wash the dishes. Jaehwan grabs the rubber gloves from him and positions himself in front of the faucet.

“I will wash these for you.” Jaehwan says, scrubbing the bowls a little bit more forceful and clumsy. He doesn’t really know how to do it. “Regarding the contract.”

Sanghyuk stands up, leaving Jaehwan alone with the dishes. He scrunches his nose, but he still has to finish what he’s started. He’s never going to let his efforts go down the drain. After he has cleaned up everything, he sees Sanghyuk sweeping fallen leaves on the backyard.

“You have too many things to do, huh?” Jaehwan notes, taking the broom from Sanghyuk. This time though, Sanghyuk doesn’t budge, removing his hand from the wood.

“Stop it already, Mister.”

“My name is Lee Jaehwan.” Jaehwan reminds, opting to stand behind him. Sanghyuk looks really mad right now. But he’s beginning to be mad too, if he’s being honest.

“Whatever.” Sanghyuk says, then he stops from sweeping to draw a loud exhale.  “Why are you doing this? Why do you keep on following me? Why are you forcing me to sign a contract on your company? Do you like me, Mr. Lee?”

That makes Jaehwan step back. He’s obviously shocked by the question, but his initial response is, “Hah! Are you out of your mind? I don’t like you! Wow, that’s too much.”

Sanghyuk doesn’t even look affronted by that. “I will never join your company. And that is final.”

“And why the hell not?”

“So I see that you’ve never got to dig deeper into my life, goodness gracious.” Sanghyuk replies sarcastically. Jaehwan hates his tone. “And that is none of your business.”

“You’re a fool for not accepting my offer –”

“Please leave. You have outstayed your welcome.” Sanghyuk says coldly. “Please leave, while I’m still being nice.”

Jaehwan scowls, taking out his wallet and pulling out his business card. He grabs Sanghyuk’s hand and puts it on his palm. In case he changes his mind. “In case you change your mind.”

  

***

 

“Sir!” Wonshik exclaims, when Jaehwan appears on the office the next day. He finds him sitting on his chair, deep in thought. He looks like he didn’t sleep for days. “We’ve been looking for you. Where have you been?”

Jaehwan doesn’t reply, his chin propped up on his hands, staring at the blank wall beside Taekwoon’s poster. If only Sanghyuk accepted his offer, then his own poster would probably be next to Taekwoon’s.

“Sir, you didn’t tell us your whereabouts. We were calling you but your phone was out of coverage. If you didn’t appear today, I would have informed the police later.”

“How many times do I have to tell you that you don’t have a say on when I will answer your call?” He says, leaning back on his chair. He squints at Wonshik. “And what the fuck? You’re supposed to report a missing person after 24 hours. I was gone for one and a half days and you’re only going to report my absence after this day ends? What if I’d gone for real?”

“I’m sorry, Sir.” Wonshik looks like he wants to throw a fit but he can’t because he’s in front of Jaehwan. “Sir I had to postpone all your schedules yesterday. But since you’re here now I’m going to call them and reschedule.”

Jaehwan frowns. He didn’t even have a chance to enjoy the sea. He went home with a negative result, meaning he didn’t do well enough. But he had come too far, too far that he didn’t even expect himself to be doing all that and yet Sanghyuk is still not cooperating. Giving up is a one big question for him. He’s not really sure if he wants to let go of him, since he said he’s not really interested in showbusiness. There’s still little hope in him that maybe Sanghyuk will decide that he wants to try. He could have given up, no one will ever know, it doesn’t seem like Sanghyuk is the type to boast around that he received an offer from a big company. But Sanghyuk keeps on pulling and pulling him closer, and he’s not sure if this is still about winning against a stubborn-headed one like him.

Wonshik clears his throat. “Sir, you have a meeting with Lee Minhyuk and Lim Hyunsik in an hour. It’s about the original soundtrack for Sungjae’s drama.”

Wonshik leaves the office, and Jaehwan is sure he can hear the faint shouts of, “He’s really frustrating!!!” from outside.

  

***

 

Jaehwan turns off the stereo, and puts the remote on the glass table. “This song is too sad. The lyrics are too...sad.”

“Sungjae is starring in a melodrama, Sir.” Hyunsik reminds him, blinking innocently.

“I know, he’s in a melodrama. But do all soundtracks of a melodrama have to be like this – sad? Gloomy? Sullen?” Jaehwan says, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Alright, we’ll take this. But I don’t think Leo has the time to record. His schedules for his next album, Japan promotions and musical are already set.”

“We’re okay with that.” Minhyuk says. At least Jaehwan doesn’t have to deal with problematic producers. “You have great singers in your company, we’re sure there’s one whose voice will fit this song.”

Well, Jaehwan has one in his mind. But he’s still not calling him. “How much time are you giving me?”

“The drama starts next month, but this song will be released after its fourth week. You still have a lot of time to think, Sir.”

“Thank you. I’ll be meeting you again soon.”

As soon as the two producers leave, Wonshik leans in. “Who’s going to sing the OST? Changsub? We can make Sungjae do it, it’s his drama after all.”

Jaehwan shrugs, back on staring on the blank wall. Sanghyuk. He wants Sanghyuk to do it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> comments and kudos are well appreciated. thank you!!!


	3. III

“Sir, someone wants to talk to you from the police station.”

Jaehwan furrows his eyebrows, he’s sure Taekwoon couldn’t make any trouble today, he’s practicing for – what if he escaped again and created trouble?

“Transfer the call.”

He taps his table with his fingers impatiently, already cursing Taekwoon in his head.

“Hello? Is this Lee Jaehwan?”

“Yes, this is Lee Jaehwan. Is something the matter?”

“Well, are you Han Sanghyuk’s guardian? He’s here in the police station.”

Jaehwan stops tapping the table upon hearing the familiar name. “Han Sanghyuk?”

“Yes. Are you his guardian?”

It doesn’t take a second for Jaehwan to answer. “Yes, I’m his guardian. I’ll be there in a sec.”

  

***

 

“You didn’t even ask if that place is restricted?” Jaehwan asks, watching Sanghyuk as the other fiddles with the handle of his guitar case. “Seriously, Han Sanghyuk.”

“This is the first time.” Sanghyuk says quietly, not meeting Jaehwan’s eyes. “I’ve been busking around for a year, and this is the first time I was caught by the police.”

“You’re lucky I gave you my business card, or else you wouldn’t have anyone to bail you out.”

“I will pay you as soon as possible. Don’t worry.” Sanghyuk picks up his bag and stands up to leave Jaehwan’s office, but Jaehwan stops him by holding his arm. Sanghyuk looks down at the hand on his arm. “What?”

“I don’t need money from you.”

Sanghyuk’s eyes move from his hand to his face. After a few moments, he removes his hand from his arm. “I know what you want from me, Lee Jaehwan.”

Jaehwan raises his eyebrows, smirking at him. When he was on his way to the police station, he couldn’t help himself from laughing. Sanghyuk just indirectly called him, it was Sanghyuk who brought himself to him. Jaehwan becomes confident that this time, he has no escape. “You do?”

“You’re going to make me sign that contract and I’ll be under your wing for so many years in exchange for bailing me out.”

“What if I tell you you’re completely wrong on that, Sanghyuk?”

That takes Sanghyuk by surprise. “What?”

“I won’t force you to sign the contract.” Jaehwan says finally. This is the second best thing he can think of to make Sanghyuk agree on him. “I understand your decision that you don’t want to be famous. But still, in exchange for bailing you out, I want you to record one song. Just one song. It will be used as a soundtrack for an upcoming drama.”

“You’re taking advantage of this, huh?” Sanghyuk snorts. “You don’t seem like the type to give up.”

“Indeed.” Jaehwan agrees. “I should grab the opportunity as soon as it presents itself in front of me, right?”

“You’re unbelievable.”

“Anyway, I want to discuss with you the details of this agreement.” Jaehwan pulls him down to make him sit again. Fortunately, Sanghyuk doesn’t stop him. “Like what I’ve said, you’re going to record one song for a drama, and it’s your choice if you want to use a fake name. I will let you stay in one of my units, give you allowance, and a free ride from my ever loyal assistant Kim Wonshik. Then after that, I will ask you one more time, if you want to sign a contract on my company. Whatever your decision is, I will respect that.”

He waits for Sanghyuk to respond, and Jaehwan feels like he’s going to win this time. He looks so deep in thought, deliberating the pros and cons of agreeing to him (well, there is nothing for Sanghyuk to lose here, he’s sure of that). It takes minutes, with Jaehwan just watching Sanghyuk think, trying to be patient for once. Sanghyuk will be worth it.

And Jaehwan also tries not to focus too much on how Sanghyuk unconsciously pouts his soft lips, and on how he rubs his cute nose with his thumb –

“What about my dog?” Sanghyuk suddenly asks, and Jaehwan smiles in victory.

  

***

 

“Hello, Sanghyuk. I’m Kim Wonshik, CEO Lee’s secretary. I will be your manager during your stay here. Nice to meet you.” A man with messy bleached hair says – Wonshik – and offers his hand for a handshake.

Instead of accepting the hand, he asks, “Where’s my dog?”

Wonshik lowers his hand, smiling. Sanghyuk notices the smile a little forced. “Your dog is staying with CEO Lee’s brother. Don’t worry, he’s a vet and has a clinic. He will take good care of your dog and you can visit the clinic on your free days. Can we now discuss about the deal?”

Sanghyuk sits on a soft, plush office chair in the conference room, Lee Jaehwan nowhere to be found. It’s not like he’s looking for him, he’s just always around that it’s weird not to see him. He doesn’t ask Wonshik that.

“Starting next week, you’ll be having vocal lessons thrice a week, your weekends free. You have one month before the soundtrack recording, and please refrain from eating foods and drinks that is bad for your throat.” Wonshik says, looking up at him to see if he’s listening. Sanghyuk nods at him to proceed. “You will be staying at CEO Lee’s condominium, with free food, free transportation and allowance. Any questions?”

Sanghyuk can’t ask for anything more. Everything is served to him on a silver plate, by someone who barely knows him but is willing to throw away his money for him just to sing one song. He doesn’t really know what to feel with that. And also, there’s a thought at the back of his mind that maybe Lee Jaehwan has other motives. He shakes his head as a response, and Wonshik pushes a sheet of paper to him.

“Your one month contract. I know it’s unnecessary, but Your Highness – I mean CEO Lee – wants you to sign it. You can read it first. Don’t worry.”

Sanghyuk looks down at the paper and reads it. There’s nothing suspicious with the contract, so he signs on it before giving it back to Wonshik. “Please take care of me while I’m here. I’m not really used to city life.”

“Don’t worry, you can trust me.” He offers his hand again, and this time Sanghyuk accepts it. “Welcome to JLee Entertainment, Han Sanghyuk.”

  

***

 

“Look who’s here.” Jaehwan announces as soon as he enters Hakyeon’s office. His number one rival, Seo Eunkwang, is sitting on Hakyeon’s sofa, having a conversation and coffee with his best friend. “Are you two plotting something against me?”

“Shut up, Jaehwan.” Hakyeon says, rolling his eyes. “Eunkwang is here to visit me.”

“Hi, Jaehwan. It’s nice to see you again.” Eunkwang greets, his eyes glinting.

Jaehwan is fully aware that he doesn’t really mean it. He sits down at the seat in front of Hakyeon, and his best friend is already warning him with his eyes. “Likewise.”

“So why are you here, Jaehwan?” Hakyeon asks, standing up to pour coffee on another cup. “You didn’t call me before going here.”

“I like being spontaneous. Right, Eunkwang?” He says, grinning at his number one rival. Well, he just got perfect timing. It saved him all the trouble of going personally to Silver Light Entertainment just to brag about getting Sanghyuk under his wide wings. “I’m here to tell you something. And since Eunkwang is here too, I have no choice but to tell him too.”

“I can leave now if it’s really that private.” Eunkwang says, but he’s not standing on his seat. Even if he does, Jaehwan knows he will just desperately put his ear on the door to eavesdrop.

“No, it’s alright. You can stay – thank you, Hakyeon – so you don’t have to find out everything from your assistant when the story reaches your tiny building.”

“What is it, Jaehwan?” Hakyeon asks.

“Remember the kid I told you who rejected my offer before?” Jaehwan says. “His name is Han Sanghyuk.”

He notices Eunkwang straightening in his seat from the corner of his eye.

“Okay? So you found out his name, and then?”

“And then he finally signed a contract with me!” he spreads his arms wide, and that’s when Eunkwang stands up in surprise.

“What?!”

“Yes! He signed up with JLee Entertainment!” he reveals, fishing his phone out of his pocket and he shows the photo of the contract Wonshik took to Hakyeon and Eunkwang. “He’s one of my artists now!”

“What the hell?” Eunkwang looks angry now, stomping his feet. “What did you do?”

“Nothing!” Jaehwan replies, blinking his eyes innocently at him. “I just asked him, then he said yes – wait, how did you know him?”

“None of your business!” he says, and turns to Hakyeon. “Sorry, Hakyeon. But I have to leave now.”

“Okay, see you soon.” Hakyeon says, still shocked. Eunkwang throws Jaehwan a dirty look before leaving Hakyeon’s office.

Jaehwan is still grinning widely when he puts his phone back on his pocket.

“You really didn’t do anything to make him agree?” Hakyeon asks. Jaehwan stands up instead, goes for the door and opens it, checking if Eunkwang is there to eavesdrop. He’s gone.

Then Jaehwan tells him everything – from the police call until he offered him a one-month trial – and sits back. “I just took that as an opportunity. I can’t just leave a precious diamond anywhere and have someone take it.”

“You’re…” Hakyeon pinches the bridge of his nose – which he usually does whenever he’s speechless over Jaehwan – and waves him off. “You can now leave.”

“You don’t have to tell me that.” Jaehwan says. “Wonshik just texted me. He’s introducing Sanghyuk to the people there. Bye Hakyeonie!”

Hakyeon has enough facepalms for today, and just decides to take a half day off.

  

***

 

“I’ll let you meet some of the artists and trainees.” Wonshik says, leading him down the stairs to the practice rooms. He opens the very first door they see and motions for him to come inside. “This is the practice room. Those boys you see over there? They are about to debut next year.”

“Hello, Wonshik hyung!” One the boys says, waving at them. “Is he a new trainee?”

“No, Sanghyuk will be staying here only for a while unless he changes his mind.” Wonshik replies. From the look on their faces it seems like they don’t know what Wonshik is saying. Sanghyuk then greets them and introduces himself.

Wonshik brings him to another room, and this time it looks different. It has lots of wires, lots and lots of wires, and a small booth inside.

“This is the studio. You’ll be recording the soundtrack here. And he’s one of the persons in charge of producing songs here.” Wonshik says. The person in front of the computer turns around. “Hi Peniel!”

“Oh? New kid? Hello.” The guy with a red cap greets.

“Hi, I’m Sanghyuk. I’ll be looking forward to work with you.”

After a little talk with Peniel, Wonshik puts his hand on his shoulder. “We’re going to meet the artists. Taekwoon said they’re in the cafe at the first floor. Are you ready to meet them? Don’t worry, they’re nice.”

Sanghyuk nods, but nervous about seeing famous people. He’s been living alone without television and smartphones so he doesn’t know how to deal with them.

Suddenly there’s a weight on his shoulders and he turns around to see a grinning Jaehwan beside him. He tries to shrug his arms off his shoulders, but Jaehwan doesn’t budge.

“Hi guys!” Jaehwan calls at the three guys sitting on a six-chair table at the far corner of the cafe. “Look who’s here!”

He gives Wonshik a pleading look, but his manager only gives him a sorry smile. “Can you please remove your arm on my shoulders, Sir?”

“You’re really no fun, Sanghyuk.” Jaehwan clicks his tongue, and pushes him down to sit in front of the three guys who are looking at them incredulously. Jaehwan sits beside him, and snaps his fingers. The barista rushes to their table. “Get me a strawberry smoothie and a glass of water for Sanghyuk here.”

Sanghyuk wants to protest about getting only a glass of water, but he’s in front of other people and he can’t sass at his new boss. Jaehwan only wiggles his index finger at him.

“No cold drinks for you.” Jaehwan warns. He slams his palm in the table lightly to get the attention of everyone, which is really unnecessary because everyone’s attention is on him already. “I’d like you to meet Sanghyuk, a new part of our family. He’s having a one-month trial with us and after that he decides if he wants to stay with us or go home.”

“One-month trial? We have something like that?” One of them says, putting down a little book with ‘script’ written on the cover. He looks like he’s the same age as Sanghyuk. “Hi, I’m Sungjae but I guess you know that already –”

“He doesn’t know you because he doesn’t watch television.” Jaehwan cuts him off, ignoring the little pout on Sungjae’s face. He points at the middle guy. “This one here in the middle is Changsub, he’s a singer, so he sings.”

Sanghyuk tries not to roll his eyes at him.

“Of course I do.” Changsub with a middle-parted hair says. He offers his hand and Sanghyuk accepts it shyly. “Hi, I’m Changsub. Nice to meet you.”

“And this guy, who is already on his third latté, is Taekwoon.”

“Hi, do you remember me?” Taekwoon says, pointing at the beanie he’s wearing.

Sanghyuk thinks he sees the beanie before, and tries to remember, until – “Oh, you’re the beanie guy who always gives me ten thousand won whenever I busk in the streets! I don’t know you’re famous!”

“Saying he’s famous is an understatement. He’s the brightest superstar of this generation.” Jaehwan points out, and hands Sanghyuk his glass of water. “And I discovered him.”

“Ignore Jaehwan. He’s just exaggerating.” Taekwoon says. “But I’m glad you’re here with us. I hope you enjoy your stay.”

Sanghyuk smiles, thinking that this is not so bad. They all seem so nice and easy to work with. The only difficult person in this company is Jaehwan, and even though he’s also nice, the smell of arrogance is still clinging to him. He has to try his best to deal with him as professionally as he can.


	4. IV

He’s finally bringing Sanghyuk to his temporary home, with Wonshik on the driver’s seat. Sanghyuk is quiet, choosing to look at the view outside the window instead of initiating a conversation with him. Jaehwan likes to hear something from him, like what he usually does when he’s bored or his favorite food. And that it’s not because he likes Sanghyuk’s voice.

Jaehwan remembers something, so he tries to get Sanghyuk’s attention. “Hey, Sanghyuk?”

Sanghyuk turns around to look at him. “What?”

He rubs at the back of his neck, and he doesn’t know why. “Do you have a phone?”

“Phone?” Sanghyuk asks, then scrunches his cute button nose. He puts his backpack on his lap and opens it. “Of course I have, wait I’ll take it out.”

“Oh, so you’re not really…” Jaehwan watches as Sanghyuk rummages his bag, inserts his whole arm inside, and finally reveals a flip phone. “Technologically impaired.”

“I’m not!” Sanghyuk says, flipping his phone open but frowns when it doesn’t light up. “Wait, why is this thing not working? I had this fully charged at the old lady’s store before going here.”

Jaehwan sighs, watching Sanghyuk take out the battery and put it back on. He meets Wonshik’s eyes at the rear view mirror, and says, “Pull this car over at the nearest mall you see.”

Wonshik stops the car when he sees one, and Jaehwan pats Sanghyuk who’s still busy trying to make his phone work. “Sanghyuk, get out and follow me.”

“Huh?” Sanghyuk asks, but Jaehwan doesn’t answer him, stepping inside the mall and looking for a shop that sells phones. He looks behind to see if Sanghyuk’s following him, and he smiles at him and motions for him to come closer.

He sees a phone shop and leads Sanghyuk inside, making him stand in front of the dummy phones. “Choose one. I’ll buy it for you.”

Sanghyuk frowns, looking down at the rows of dummy phones then at Jaehwan. “You don’t have to, I have a phone and –”

“You can’t even make it work, Sanghyuk.” Jaehwan smiles at him, and leans on the counter. “Don’t worry, it’s a gift for you. I will never take it back.”

Sanghyuk stares at him for another minute, before sighing. He reads the descriptions beside each phones, and points at one in the middle. “Okay, I’ll get this.”

Jaehwan leans in, and finds out that it’s the cheapest phone. He chuckles, patting Sanghyuk lightly on his arm. “I’m not poor, Sanghyuk. I can buy you the most expensive phone here.”

Sanghyuk huffs, crossing his arms on his chest. “I’m not looking for an expensive phone. I’m not going to use it that often anyways.”

Jaehwan chooses a phone that is similar to his, smiling at the saleslady who blushes at the attention. He looks back at Sanghyuk. “You’re so cute, Sanghyuk.”

Jaehwan sees Sanghyuk’s ear turning red and realizes what he just said. He clears his throat and stands straight, looking everywhere but him. He doesn’t even know how those words came out of his mouth but it’s not like he doesn’t mean it, Sanghyuk is really cute but it shouldn’t be said out loud.

Well, that tablet looks interesting, should he buy Sanghyuk one too?

  

***

 

Sanghyuk’s temporary place is small, but large enough for him. Jaehwan asks Wonshik to buy groceries for him, and that leaves him and his boss alone in his new house.

“Do you like it?” Jaehwan asks from behind him.

Sanghyuk nods, looking at his bed and honestly it looks like he will be having a peaceful sleep in the next days. He’s used to sleeping on a hardwood floor with the sound of waves crashing lulling him, but it doesn’t mean he never dreamed of sleeping in a nice and comfortable bed.

“I’m glad you do, then let’s go back to the couch and I’ll teach you how to use your new phone.”

Sanghyuk follows Jaehwan to the couch, watching the other taking out his new phone from its box. He doesn’t actually like someone buying things – especially this expensive – for him but as he looked at Jaehwan’s pleading face, he couldn’t help but say yes.

Jaehwan teaches him how to use the phone’s basic features – from saving contacts to taking selfies – and he learns pretty quickly. It’s not that hard adjusting to technology, he thinks.

Now he has Jaehwan’s and Wonshik’s phone numbers in his contacts, and Jaehwan smiles at him proudly when he successfully sends a message to him.

“And now I have your number too.” Jaehwan says. “If you need something and Wonshik is not available, you can call or message me. Understand?”

“Do you also do this to your new trainees?” Sanghyuk asks curiously. He wonders if he’s the only one who gets this special treatment from Jaehwan.

Jaehwan looks so deep in thought, before he answers, “I let them use my units here, and I also give them allowance. But they’re not given free transportation and phones.”

Sanghyuk doesn’t know what to feel with that. Is he really that special? He doesn’t see himself as a talented person and he only sings as a hobby. Never did he expect that someone as high as Jaehwan will try to pull him up. But a famous life doesn’t fit Sanghyuk.

“Do you want to see your dog?” Jaehwan asks again after a moment of silence. “I can ask my brother for a video call.”

“Video call?”

“Yeah. You call someone and you see their face on screen.” He says, and taps on his phone screen. Then another voice comes out, surprising him.

“What do you want, Jaehwan.” The other voice says. “I’m a little busy now.”

“Hi, dear brother.” Jaehwan says, and pulls Sanghyuk closer to him. “This is Sanghyuk, he’s Georgia’s owner.”

“Oh. Hello, Sanghyuk. I’m Junghwan.” Jaehwan’s brother – Junghwan – greets on the other line, his tone quickly changing from irritated to cheerful. Does Jaehwan often annoy people? “Do you want to see Georgia? She’s sleeping right now.”

“You don’t have to wake her up.” Sanghyuk says weakly, and he almost tears up when he sees his dog sleeping soundly on a soft dog bed, with a supply of food and water on his side.

“Georgia is a bit undernourished, but don’t worry about it, Sanghyuk. I’ll take care of her. She’s very nice and she listens.” Junghwan says, the camera still on his dog. “You can visit her when you’re free. She will be happy to see you.”

“Thank you, Junghwan.” He says. “I’ll see her soon.”

The call ends after Jaehwan has finished pestering his brother for a dinner on the weekend. Junghwan could only sigh.

“Junghwan is my fraternal twin.” Jaehwan says, looking down at his now blank screen. “He loves me more than I love him, but he doesn’t really like to show it.”

“Obviously.” Sanghyuk agrees. “Thank you.”

Sanghyuk thinks he sees Jaehwan blushing, but he might be mistaken. “You’re welcome.”

Sanghyuk stares at Jaehwan’s serene face. It’s a new side of him he’s seeing, completely different from the cocky Jaehwan he first knew. He likes it though. He wants see this side more.

  

***

 

It’s Sanghyuk’s first day of vocal training. The vocal coach, Kyungsoo, has always been serious and mostly all trainees are scared of him. It’s not really a surprise that Sanghyuk looks scared too.

It’s been nearly noon and Sanghyuk is supposed to finish soon. He waits outside for Kyungsoo to come out and ask him about Sanghyuk. He also plans to take Sanghyuk out to lunch. Wonshik has some other work to do, and that means he has no one to eat with. So Jaehwan’s here, joining him for lunch. Sanghyuk should thank him later for this.

The door opens, and he pushes himself off the wall to approach Kyungsoo. He puts his arm on the other man’s shoulders, but is quickly shrugged off.

“How is Sanghyuk?” He asks, looking at the small window on the door and sees Sanghyuk compiling some music sheets.

“He’s not really that wide-ranged. It will be difficult for him to reach high notes but we can do something about that. There’s something in his voice that I really want to develop.” Kyungsoo explains. “From what I heard from Taekwoon he’s only here for one song.”

“That’s not really certain. He can still change his mind and sign with us. The possibility is high.” Jaehwan says, smiling when Sanghyuk comes out of the room. “I’m getting the soundtrack demo later. I’ll send it to you right away after it gets my approval.”

Sanghyuk says goodbye to Kyungsoo politely and turns to Jaehwan when he’s out of earshot. “What are you doing here?”

“I bet you have no one to eat lunch with because Wonshik’s out working.” Jaehwan says, putting his hands behind him because it starts shaking. He doesn’t even know why there’s suddenly a tremble in his voice when he adds, “So I’m taking you out to lunch.”

Sanghyuk blinks, then his face becomes apologetic. “Wonshik said he can’t join me to lunch so I asked my friend to eat with me today.”

“A friend?”

“Hongbin. I’m eating with Hongbin today.” Sanghyuk says, scratching his head. “You know that I’m friends with him, right?”

Jaehwan frowns, because what if Lee Hongbin convinces Sanghyuk to leave him and sign with -

“I know what you’re thinking. We’re only catching up, I swear.” Sanghyuk sighs, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. When Jaehwan doesn’t speak up, still frowning, he takes it as a cue to continue, “But thank you for your offer. We should eat together next time, well if you’re not busy like today.” 

Jaehwan pouts to himself when Sanghyuk leaves him there in the hallway. To think that he was really excited to bring him to Lotteria, but he just got rejected. Sanghyuk even chose that top guy from the rival company over him. How dare he?

 

***

 

“So the rumors are true, you’re only doing one song for them? So that means you’re still free?”

“I told you, I’m not going to sign at any company.” Sanghyuk repeats for the nth time. He met Hongbin in a small restaurant that serves the most delicious seolleongtang, and told him the story of how Jaehwan made him agree to record a song for them. “It’s just a song, and then I’m going back home. You’re really persistent, aren’t you?”

If only Hongbin weren’t busy when he called him after being caught by the police, then he would’ve been staying in his home right now, doing his usual routine. Hongbin looked guilty when he found out. “Because you never tell me why you don’t want to be famous, like me.”

Sanghyuk sighs. Whenever Hongbin asks him why, he just gives him a small smile and shakes his head. Well this time he thinks Hongbin won’t let him go if he doesn’t say anything. “It’s really a long story, and I’m uncomfortable talking about it.”

“Alright. I understand.” Hongbin says, smiling assuringly at him. “I’m sorry if I always bother you.”

Sanghyuk chuckles and raises his hand to ask for another bowl of rice. He pushes the bowl to Hongbin then, and his friend only gives him a weird look. “Eat more, you look thinner than the last time I saw you.”

“Fine.” Hongbin grumbles, but he finishes his food in record time. “Anyway, do you ever wonder about it?”

“About what?”

“I mean, CEO Lee gave you a special treatment?” Hongbin says. “Don’t you think he’s only doing that to convince you to stay with them after the soundtrack?”

“Of course, I’ve thought about that.” He really did, because he’s not even their contract artist to begin with – even their own artists don’t even get free transportation and free phones – but he’s been taught not to think badly of someone who helped him a lot, so he put it at the back of his mind. “But like what I’ve said, nothing can convince me into signing with any company. I just need to do it because I owe him.”

  

***

 

Wonshik drives him into the apartment, and it’s obvious that he’s really, really tired.

“Uhm, you look tired, Mr. Kim.”

“I do.” Wonshik says with a small laugh. “And please don’t call me Mr. Kim it makes me feel very old. I’m only a few years older than you, just call me Wonshik.”

“Okay, Wonshik.” Sanghyuk agrees. “Does CEO Lee always give you a lot of work?”

“No, not really. He just doesn’t like the people who he was supposed to meet earlier, so he made me do it. As a little reward, I’m allowed to sleep the whole morning tomorrow and go to work after lunch.” He says, stopping at the red light. “CEO Lee is actually nice and caring, he just puts it under the guise of being a pain in the ass.”

Sanghyuk nods in agreement. He and Jaehwan might have started at the wrong foot and found him annoying and so full of himself, but as days go by, he can see how dedicated Jaehwan is to his work and how he adores the people around him.

“I think you should stop giving me free rides, Wonshik.” Sanghyuk says after a while, and meets Wonshik’s eyes in the rearview mirror.

“It’s really okay, Sanghyuk. It’s not so much for me to give you a ride.”

“I want to do it on my own, don’t worry.” Sanghyuk says, raising his right hand. “But can you guide me which bus or subway should I ride? And also the nearest grocery.”

“Are you really sure?” Wonshik asks again.

“Yes, I’m sure.” Sanghyuk assures him. “I can inform CEO Lee about it.”

“Alright, if that’s what you really want.”

“Thanks, Wonshik.”

  

***

 

Is it weird to stare at his phone for too long just because he’s waiting for a call?

It’s way past his bedtime already, but he can’t go to bed because he’s waiting for Sanghyuk’s call. Wonshik called him earlier and told him that Sanghyuk will probably call him later. And because he hates spoilers, he quickly ends the call even before Wonshik can speak again.

He lies on his million-won couch, still watching his phone on the coffee table and eventually falls from it when his phone suddenly rings. He counts to ten – letting it ring because he’s not excited – and picks it up.

“Hello?”

“Are you still awake, CEO Lee?” Sanghyuk asks.

Jaehwan clears his throat before answering in a sleepy voice, “I was sleeping when you called. What’s the matter, Sanghyuk? Can’t it wait until tomorrow?”

“I’m sorry, I’ll just call you again tomorrow –”

“No!” Jaehwan covers his mouth, because what the fuck is that. “I mean, I’m already awake. You better tell me now.”

“I was about to call earlier but I watched a movie in this television and completely forgot. I turned the lights off, I really felt like I was watching in a cinema.” Sanghyuk says, and he sounds like a boy in awe. Jaehwan grins. He wishes he was with him and witnessed him gaping at the big screen in front of them. “I want to inform you something.”

“About?” Jaehwan replies impatiently.

“I told Wonshik to stop giving me a ride.”

It took Jaehwan a few beats, then, “What?!”

“I realized that I really don’t need it.”

“Sanghyuk, it’s a part of our agreement, I can’t break that easily.” Jaehwan says, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’m not going to agree.”

“But it’s my decision, CEO Lee. I’m fine with my own.”

Jaehwan’s temper is quickly rising. “I said no. You’re going to be given free rides from Wonshik, or from any available company drivers.”

“You’ve done a lot for me. It is actually too much. I don’t want to burden anyone, especially I’m not one of your artists.”

Then sign with us, is what Jaehwan wants to say, but stops himself. He stands up and paces around his living room, finally calming down from almost bursting out. “You’re not a burden, Sanghyuk –”

“This will be the very last thing I’m going to ask from you.” He can hear Sanghyuk sigh. “If you’re not going to say yes then I’m going to leave your place and everything you gave me this instant.”

Jaehwan almost drops his phone in surprise. “Are you threatening me, Han Sanghyuk?”

“I have to, if you don’t want to agree.”

Take it or leave it, that is what Sanghyuk is saying. “Fine.”

“Thank you, CEO Lee. I’ll see you on Wednesday.”

Jaehwan ends the call and drops his phone on his couch. He stares at it for a while – the same stare he had before Sanghyuk called – and laughs at himself.

He can’t believe he gave up just like that.


	5. V

“What are you doing here?”

Jaehwan grins and invites himself inside, looking around the unit. It looks slightly different from the last time he was there, it’s clean – cleaner even – and feels like home. “Wonshik told me you’re asking him the directions going from here to the company and vice versa.”

“So?” Sanghyuk says, leaning on the wall. Jaehwan gives him an once-over, and he looks so cute wearing those pajamas.

“Since Wonshik has a half-day off, and he has something to do when he goes to work later, then I will do it instead! I’m going to teach you everything you want to know about the city!”

“Don’t you have work to do?”

“Do you even know how to serve your guests water?” Jaehwan asks, going to the kitchen to serve himself water. “I’m the boss, I do what I want.”

“You don’t even have to do this, CEO Lee.” Sanghyuk says and he sounds so annoyed. Jaehwan tries to ignore it. “I told you I don’t want to burden anyone.”

“I told you you’re not a burden. And I don’t have any appointments today.” Jaehwan goes for the sink to wash the glass and puts it back to the dish rack. “Besides, I only brought my car and my phone. I left my wallet in my apartment so you’re going to pay for everything.”

He’s half-lying though. He left his wallet in his apartment, but with the modern technology now he can pay using only his phone.

Sanghyuk looks unimpressed, so he taps on his pockets, he even turns around to pat his back pockets to prove that he doesn’t have anything except for his phone. “You believe me now?”

Sanghyuk just stands there, most likely he’s thinking if he should go with him or not. But it’s not like he’s really leaving him with much choice. He’s already here, and Sanghyuk can’t ask Wonshik again because he’s resting and will go back to work later. And today’s his free day.

“Okay. I’ll just take a shower and we can leave.”

Jaehwan smirks in victory and watches Sanghyuk trudge to his room. Sanghyuk looks defeated, but not much that Jaehwan feels bad about it. He just looks forward into hanging out with him, and he actually has the whole day planned in his head. He sits on the couch, biting his tongue to stop himself from giggling.

  

***

 

Jaehwan steps down the bus, and now they’re back in front of the apartment. Sanghyuk was quiet throughout the rides, only asking some questions that Jaehwan was able to answer like is this the nearest grocery here, does the pharmacy sell those herbal cough drops, or how fast is the internet in the pc-bangs.

“You memorized it well?” Jaehwan asks, and he kind of wishes that he didn’t. He’s more than willing to ride those buses again. But Sanghyuk nods, so he goes on his plan B. “I’m hungry. We should eat.”

Sanghyuk looks at him incredulously. “I can cook for you.”

It goes way against what Jaehwan is planning – which is to bring him to Lotteria – but it can be done next time. There’s nothing more important to Sanghyuk’s cooking and he misses it a lot. He clings to Sanghyuk’s arm, beaming. “Lead the way, Sanghyukkie.”

It feels like he’s back at Sanghyuk’s house, the one near the seas. Sanghyuk has prepared more than enough for them and Jaehwan can ask Wonshik to join them, but he feels a little selfish and he doesn’t really know why. All he wants is to hang out with Sanghyuk, just the two of them.

As usual the food is delicious, and he hums when Sanghyuk asks him about it. “What can’t you do, Sanghyuk? You sing so well despite the lack of training, you can memorize directions easily, and most of all you can cook.”

He praised him way too much and he doesn’t even mean to do it as he was only carried away, but Sanghyuk blushes and he suddenly feels proud of himself.

“By the way, I want to do something after this.” Jaehwan says after his last bite, and Sanghyuk stops on his tracks going for the refrigerator. “You know, I got caught up with work that I forgot how to play around.”

“What do you mean?”

“Have you gone to an arcade? Should we go?” it isn’t as smooth as he thought, but he’s determined.

“I haven’t, but I’ve seen it before. That one with too much lights and it’s really noisy.” Sanghyuk answers, and then he nods. “I was really curious before, but I had no time to explore inside. So yeah, maybe today’s the right time. We should go.”

That was easy, Jaehwan thinks, and goes to help Sanghyuk clean up the table.

“Why are you helping me with this?” Sanghyuk asks, wrapping an apron around his body. He looks like he’s not used to leaving dirty dishes in the sink. “I can do this alone. You should go back to the couch.”

“I live by myself. I do the dishes and laundry, I clean my own place. Though I’m the only one who can swallow my own cooking.” He says, standing beside Sanghyuk in front of the sink. “Contrary to popular belief, I didn’t grow up into a rich family. Junghwan and I worked part-time jobs while we were studying.”

“Was it hard getting to where you are right now?” Sanghyuk asks. He doesn’t sound surprised.

“It was never easy.” Jaehwan chuckles, rinsing the plates carefully. Recalling his past isn’t a part of his plan but he’s fine with that as long as he gets Sanghyuk interested. “I started a small studio, signed an artist that didn’t make it, the company went bankrupt. My best friend who is a psychologist helped me a lot financially, until I discovered Taekwoon. From there I learned how to get the perfect projects for him, also how to work well with the producers, and then the rest is history.”

“You really went through a lot.”

“Yeah, and no one knows about the real story, aside from my family, best friend, Taekwoon and Wonshik. There are several accounts in the forums about me, some are true, some are just made up.” Jaehwan continues. “If you try selling my story, you’ll get millions.”

Sanghyuk snorts, spraying him with water on his face. Jaehwan yelps, but doesn’t get revenge. He knows better.

“I’m telling the truth! Media can’t get the story from me so they’re trying from insiders.” He says, wiping his face with his sleeve. “They only failed though.”

“Why do you want to keep everything secret?”

Jaehwan smiles a little. “My story is just a typical success story every businessman born in a poor family has. It’s my private life, I don’t think people have to know that as well.”

He glances at Sanghyuk who pauses from soaping the dishes. He looks like he’s been thinking about something. “You’re right.”

  

***

 

“I’m an expert in this game.” Jaehwan says, inserting a token in the slot. He pats the other side of the chair for Sanghyuk to sit on, and since there’s only a little space left, Sanghyuk scoots closer. Their thighs touch, and Jaehwan tries to ignore that electrifying feel in his chest. “Just press those keys, one by one, simultaneously, whatever. Also you can move this stick at any direction you want.”

Sanghyuk just nods, and since Jaehwan is in player 1, he presses the start button. He leans closer to the monitor when he sees his character’s HP decreasing, and almost curses out loud when it falls down.

“I’m just warming up. Besides, it’s your first time playing, so I let you win.” he says, and another token is inserted in the slot. “Now I won’t let you get away that easily.”

Three tokens after and Sanghyuk is still winning. Jaehwan huffs, standing up. He looks down at Sanghyuk, and the other stares at him with a smirk on his face.

“This is faulty. We should try another game.”

Next is the basketball, and Sanghyuk pats him on the shoulder before he can even speak. “I know basketball, you don’t have to explain everything to me.”

“Well, yeah? Let’s see.” Jaehwan says, giving Sanghyuk a token. “I’ll let you know that I play basketball during high school.”

In the end, Jaehwan made it to the third set meanwhile Sanghyuk made it to the fourth. Sanghyuk laughs this time, and he almost stumbles from too much laughing when he sees Jaehwan’s red face. 

“Why are you laughing?” Jaehwan snarls, putting his hands on his hips.

“I also played basketball in high school.” Sanghyuk says in between laughs, clutching at his tummy. “I was the star player.”

“I didn’t know you also play basketball at the countryside.”

“Of course, we do. The fields there can even occupy ten basketball courts.” Sanghyuk turns Jaehwan’s body around, pushing him to somewhere. “Since I won two times, you should get me that toy from that box.” 

Sanghyuk points at the claw machine near them. Jaehwan cracks his knuckles, approaching the machine. “This is piece of cake. I have a collection of all the toys I got from this.”

“You sure do.” Sanghyuk watches as Jaehwan leans down and puts his hands on the controller. “Can you get me that blue one?”

And so Jaehwan tries, but the claws aren’t cooperating until his fourth try. He groans out loud, scaring the little kid who is watching them from behind. Sanghyuk chuckles.

“You don’t have to anymore. You’ve proven yourself enough.” Sanghyuk says, and he’s not even mocking but Jaehwan doesn’t want to go without getting Sanghyuk what he wants.

“No, just one last time.” he says. Sanghyuk lets him, so he goes back on his stance. The claws holds the toy, and Jaehwan slowly drags it to the slot at the corner, praying silently that he gets it this time, then –

“Fuck I got it!” he shouts, which gets lots of glares from the elders accompanying their kids. He doesn’t care anymore, as he picks up the toy and gives it to Sanghyuk. “I got it! I told you I can do it I just need more time and practice since it’s been a while since I played with this one.”

“Congratulations, then.” Sanghyuk says, taking the toy from Jaehwan with a faint blush on his cheeks.

Jaehwan clears his throat when the thumping in his chest begins. He probably needs to go to the doctor. His heart has been acting weird these past few days. “Let’s go home. It’s getting darker outside.”

  

***

 

Jaehwan thinks there’s something wrong with his body. Especially when he’s with Sanghyuk.

He also thinks there’s something wrong with the people around him.

 

_First episode: Silver Light Entertainment’s top singer Lee Hongbin visits their company building_

Jaehwan is about to step out of the building, Wonshik behind him, when he notices a man wearing a black cap, black mask and sunglasses. Jaehwan is not stupid to not know that it is a common get-up for celebrities who want to escape from public’s eyes.

“Who are you?” Jaehwan asks, blocking the man from entering his building.

The man removes his mask and sunglasses, and there he sees Lee Hongbin standing in front of him. “It’s good to see you, CEO Lee.”

“What are you doing here, Lee Hongbin? Did you finally realize that I’m a better CEO than Seo Eunkwang? Are you going to terminate your contract with them and sign with us? Sorry sweetie, but I hate mess.”

Hongbin snorts and removes his cap, revealing his blond hair. “Sorry CEO Lee, but I’m here to visit Sanghyuk.”

“What?” Jaehwan mouths, but Hongbin only gives him a small bow and enters the building. He can hear several gasps from the people inside so he goes back, ignoring Wonshik who’s been telling him that he has a meeting in an hour.

There he notices Sanghyuk coming out of the trainees’ practice room - he’s been hanging out with the kids when he’s free – and rushing to meet Hongbin halfway.

“You made it!” Sanghyuk says to Hongbin and gives him a little hug. Something twists in Jaehwan’s stomach, so he approaches them with a fake smile.

“You just lured an enemy to a trap, Sanghyuk.” Jaehwan says, crossing his arms on his chest. “So what is this about?”

“I believe I don’t have to tell you that, CEO Lee. He’s here for a chat. Now if you excuse us, we’re going to the café.” Sanghyuk says, and doesn’t spare a glance to Jaehwan as he pulls Hongbin to the café. Hongbin though, looks at him, a shit-eating grin on his face.

He watches them until they’re out of sight, the thing in his chest still doesn’t go away. He feels like he can’t breathe.

“Sir, we have to go.” Wonshik says, and Jaehwan lets himself be dragged out unwillingly.

 

_Second episode: Sanghyuk goes to Junghwan’s clinic to visit Georgia for the first time_

Sanghyuk cuddles with Georgia on the corner, giggling when the big dog licks his face. Jaehwan grimaces, but warmth covers his chest and he likes the feeling.

“You’re smiling like an idiot.” Junghwan says, sitting beside him on the reception area. They came on hours with no patients and owners around, so Junghwan could talk to them. “What’s up, dear twin?”

He turns away from Sanghyuk and Georgia, and looks at his brother. “How’s Georgia doing?”

Fortunately, Junghwan doesn’t notice his change of topic. Because he doesn’t know what he’s going to answer with that. “I’ve never seen her that happy. Usually, she’s quiet but she plays with the other dogs and listens to us.”

“She looks healthier now.” Jaehwan says. “Thank you for taking care of her.”

“I don’t know you’re this nice.” Junghwan says. “I mean, Sanghyuk’s a complete stranger and yet you’re doing this for him.”

Jaehwan sighs, wiping his sweaty palms on his pants. “I know, but Sanghyuk’s a rare gem. I should do everything for him to sign up with my company. I will accommodate to all his needs if I have to.”

“What if –” Junghwan trails off, then shakes his head, standing up. “Never mind. I should talk to Sanghyuk.”

“What is it?” Jaehwan tugs at his brother’s hand. “Tell me.”

Junghwan sits down again and looks at him with worry on his face. “What if after all you’ve done for him he still chooses to go home?”

Jaehwan has never thought of that, completely confident that Sanghyuk will change his initial decision, but now that Junghwan brings it up, it makes him think. “Why are you telling me this?”

“I just asked.” Junghwan says, but he knows that he’s lying. They’re twins, they know each other so well. “I will talk to Sanghyuk now. Feel free to get some snacks in the fridge – not that I have to tell you, you’re going to do it anyways.”

_Third episode: Jaehwan watches Sanghyuk’s vocal training_

Kyungsoo doesn’t want him there, but he has no choice, Jaehwan is the highest authority in the building.

It’s been a while since the last time he heard Sanghyuk sing, and now there are lots of improvements, it is noticeable. He leans back on the couch, closing his eyes. He lets Sanghyuk’s voice fill his head, and he can’t help but smile widely. He likes it, he wants Sanghyuk to sing for him, preferably when it’s just the two of them alone in the practice room – or Sanghyuk’s apartment.

He really made the right decision of giving Sanghyuk the soundtrack.

“Jaehwan.”

Someone nudges his shoulder and he opens his eyes to see Kyungsoo looming over him. Sanghyuk’s not in the room anymore, and he wants to stand up and follow him, but Kyungsoo is still there. “Yeah?”

“Sanghyuk’s doing great. He fits the song just right.” Kyungsoo says, hugging his music sheets to his chest. “I can’t believe you just found a second Taekwoon.”

Jaehwan smiles a little, sitting up straight. “There’s no second Taekwoon. Sanghyuk is just Sanghyuk.”

Kyungsoo gives him a weird look, and Jaehwan frowns.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Is something in my face?”

“Nothing.” Kyungsoo says, shaking his head. “You should go out and eat. It’s way past lunchtime.”

He doesn’t need to be told twice, he goes out of the practice room and looks for Sanghyuk. But he’s nowhere around. He pouts, deciding he should just skip lunch and stay at his office.

He can’t deny the empty feeling in his chest.

 

_Fourth episode: Jaehwan thinks he’s going crazy_

He decides that he should call Sanghyuk tonight, not because he’s not busy – he has to look at some questions that will be asked for his magazine interview tomorrow – but because he thinks Sanghyuk is probably lonely right now.

“Hello?” Sanghyuk answers after a few rings, and Jaehwan plops down on his couch, hugging the nearest cushion beside him.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m making coffee.” Sanghyuk says. “Why did you call?”

Jaehwan stares at the ceiling, thinking of the proper words to say, then, “I just thought you’re probably lonely.”

“Uh huh.” Sanghyuk says. He knows that he’s smiling right now. He can feel it. “Well, ever since my grandmother died, I’ve been feeling really lonely. Now that Georgia’s away from me, the feeling’s the same but I can manage. 

“You sure?” 

“Yeah. I think you’re the one who’s lonely.”

“Hey, I’m not –” Jaehwan is cut off by the sound of the doorbell ringing. Obviously it’s not his, so that only means someone’s on the other side of Sanghyuk’s door.

“I’ll just get the door, wait.”

“Look at the intercom first before opening the door!” He shouts at the other line, but it looks like Sanghyuk left his phone somewhere.

He freezes when he hears a crashing sound.

“Sanghyuk? Sanghyuk!”

There’s no answer coming from the other line, even just another sound, so he quickly stands up, grabbing his car keys from the counter. His heart is beating loudly with nervousness, afraid that something might have happened to Sanghyuk.

Unfortunately, the call disconnects and he can’t contact Sanghyuk anymore. He curses out loud, starting his engine and he drives almost past the speed limit. He should get to Sanghyuk’s place as soon as possible.

He chooses to climb the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator, taking huge steps to fourth floor. He runs to Sanghyuk’s unit, not even pausing to breathe, and when he reaches the door he pushes the doorbell lots of times. It’s locked and he doesn’t know the passcode.

He almost calls the security when the door opens, revealing a very surprised Sanghyuk. Jaehwan almost falls right there in front of him, his legs weak, panting so hard but he’s relieved that Sanghyuk looks okay.

“CEO Lee?” Sanghyuk pulls him inside and closes the door. “What happened? Is there something wrong?”

“You -” Jaehwan clutches at his chest. “I heard something – there was crashing – I thought something happened to you.”

Sanghyuk stares at him for a moment before answering, “My neighbor gave me some herbs from her grandmother’s garden. I was too excited that I knocked off a pot.”

Jaehwan leans his whole body on the door, laughing at himself. He feels stupid.

“Sorry I didn’t get to call you back I was busy cleaning the mess.” Sanghyuk says, and he holds Jaehwan’s wrist gently. “Are you okay? I’ll get you water.”

Jaehwan nods, and Sanghyuk leads him to the couch, worry etched on his face. It’s no one’s fault, there’s nobody to blame. He just panicked. He covers his eyes with his arm, ashamed for what he did but at least Sanghyuk’s okay. It’s the most important thing.


	6. VI

“The doctor said I’m completely okay. My heart is healthy, I have normal blood pressure, there’s nothing wrong with my body, blablabla.” Jaehwan says, pacing back and forth in Hakyeon’s clinic that it makes the doctor a little dizzy. “He’s definitely lying. Should I go for a second opinion?”

“You said you feel weird things in your body whenever you’re with Sanghyuk?” Hakyeon asks, and for the first time in his life he becomes interested with his best friend’s daily life stories.

“Yeah, like someone’s using my heart as a drum or that fluttering in my stomach that makes me want to pee. And that only happens when I’m with Sanghyuk, sometimes just thinking of him.” Jaehwan explains, sitting on Hakyeon’s desk. Hakyeon has half the heart to push him off. “I know there’s something wrong with me. But I underwent several checkups and it said the same thing! Do you have any doctors to recommend?”

“I don’t have any doctors to recommend. And your doctor is right. There’s nothing wrong with you.” Hakyeon says, grinning. Jaehwan frowns at him, and is about to open his mouth when he cuts him off, “Oh, poor kid. You’ve read lots of drama scripts for your artists and yet you don’t have any idea of what you’re feeling right now?”

“Of course I read those scripts properly, those romantic cheesy cringeworthy things I have to accept for my artists because it’s highly in demand right now and it gives them the perfect publicity and - wait what do these stories have to do with my health?”

“Jaehwan, think. You’re not dumb.” Hakyeon leans in and pats Jaehwan’s cheek lightly. “I want you to realize by yourself.”

Jaehwan knits his eyebrows, staring at Hakyeon’s eyes like he’s trying to look for the answer there, until – “No way.”

“No way what?”

“I don’t like Sanghyuk!” Jaehwan blurts out loud, standing up abruptly. He awkwardly laughs, looking anywhere but Hakyeon. “I don’t like him. What are you saying, Hakyeon.”

Hakyeon just smiles at him.

  

***

 

Jaehwan doesn’t like Sanghyuk. Of course he doesn’t.

That’s why when he sees Sanghyuk coming out of the practice room he turns around and looks for somewhere to hide, but he’s slow enough for Sanghyuk to see him.

“CEO Lee!” Sanghyuk says, and Jaehwan pretends he doesn’t hear. “CEO Lee!”

There’s a hand holding his wrist and he quickly pulls his hand away, startling Sanghyuk. “What?”

He winces at his tone, and Sanghyuk doesn’t mask the surprise in his face. “Uh, I haven’t seen you for a while so I just want to ask you for lunch if that’s -”

“No, I’m busy. I have to go.” Jaehwan says in one breath, not even saying good bye to Sanghyuk as he walks away and hides at the nearest room he sees. He holds at his wrist – the one Sanghyuk just held moments ago – and shivers when he remembers the feeling it gave him.

  

***

 

“Hakyeon said something really unbelievable yesterday.” Jaehwan says, as soon as Wonshik reaches his desk. “And it was really funny, to be honest.”

“What is it?”

Jaehwan has to swallow a lump in his throat.”Hakyeon said I like Sanghyuk.”

“Aren’t you, though?” Wonshik replies, and he sounds like it’s the most obvious thing the world.

“What?” Jaehwan glares at Wonshik, and his assistant cowers in his spot.

“Everyone’s been talking about that lately, since you gave him a very special treatment despite not being your contract artist. They believe you’re really attracted to him in a romantic way.”

“WHAT?” Jaehwan almost flips his table, and he pinches the bridge of his nose, groaning. “Oh god, I don’t like him!”

“Okay. If you say so.” Wonshik looks like he’s not convinced.

“You don’t believe me, Kim Wonshik?”

“Uh.” Wonshik rubs at the back of his neck, unable to give the answer he wants.

“Whatever. Get out. I want to be alone.” Jaehwan points at his door, and Wonshik puts down some folders on his desk before finally leaving him.

Jaehwan really thinks he’s going crazy.

 

***

  

Jaehwan is avoiding him. More than a week of no late phone calls, no one to interrupt his lessons, no one to block his way and ask him if he’s free.

Sanghyuk frowns, hesitating if he should knock at his office door. He doesn’t even know why Jaehwan’s avoiding him, he tried recalling if he did something that could’ve offended him, but there’s none. He wants to know what is bothering Jaehwan, but how?

There’s no harm in trying, so he steps closer to the door and knocks, then the door is suddenly opened by Wonshik.

“Oh hey, Sanghyuk.” Wonshik greets. Sanghyuk smiles a little, and peeks behind him.

“Is CEO Lee here?” He asks, even though he already sees Jaehwan averting his eyes.

“Yeah, he’s here.” Wonshik steps back, and calls Jaehwan. “Sanghyuk is looking for you, CEO Lee.”

“We’re in a meeting.” Jaehwan says sternly, and it sends a pang on Sanghyuk’s chest. What did he really do?

“I’m going to get coffee.” Wonshik says, leaving them alone, and Jaehwan looks like he’s about to protest but stops himself. He just scowls, going back to his office chair.

“This will only take a few minutes. Sorry for wasting your precious time.” Sanghyuk says, curling his fists. He’s getting frustrated. “I just want to remind you that I’m going to record the soundtrack later and I want to cook dinner for you tomorrow night. Do you want to go?”

Jaehwan looks at him, face blank. Sanghyuk is getting more convinced that he’s going to decline, so he sighs, defeated.

“Okay. I understand.”

He’s about to go for the door when he hears Jaehwan softly call for him.

“I’ll come.”

Sanghyuk turns around. “Thanks. See you.”

Jaehwan just nods, and that’s the cue for him to get out of his office. He’s glad that he tried.

  

***

 

Sanghyuk looked broken yet hopeful when he asked him about the dinner. Was it his fault? He couldn’t say no to him, not when he looked like that. Did he do that to him?

Somehow it felt satisfying to know that he’s not the only one suffering – that Sanghyuk is also affected.

He feels like a jerk.

Jaehwan video calls Hakyeon, and the latter doesn’t look exasperated like he always does when he visits him in his clinic.

“What do you want, Jaehwan.”

“Don’t worry, I won’t take much of your time.” He says, heading to his walk-in closet. “What do you think I should wear tonight?”

“You have a date?” Hakyeon asks, and Jaehwan focuses the camera on his wardrobe. “Oh, did you finally confess to Sanghyuk – wait I like that deep blue one, on the left side.”

“It’s not a date.” Jaehwan says, taking out the suit jacket Hakyeon points at. “And what do you mean by confess? I told you I don’t like Sanghyuk that way!”

“But I talked to Wonshik yesterday and Junghwan the other day, they said the same thing about you and Sanghyuk.”

“Are you guys talking behind my back?” He grumbles, stomping his feet indignantly.

“We’re not.” Hakyeon says calmly. “They just told me you’re acting so weird lately. And asked if there’s something wrong with you. You easily snap whenever they ask you about Sanghyuk. And are you avoiding him?”

“I’m just too busy that I don’t have time to come out of my office and ask Sanghyuk to hang out with me.” He says breezily, pulling out a knee-length shorts the same color of his suit jacket. “In fact, he invited me over for dinner tonight. He’s lucky I’m actually free.”

“That doesn’t stop you, Jaehwan.” Hakyeon says. “You’re the worst absolute liar, don’t you know that?”

Jaehwan taps his chin with his fingers,thinking. “Should I bring flowers for table decoration?”

  

***

 

Jaehwan sits stiffly on the dining area, watching as Sanghyuk puts the fresh flowers he bought on the vase.

“You don’t have to buy flowers.” Sanghyuk says, placing the vase in the middle of the table. “Fortunately we have a vase here.”

“It makes the house more beautiful. There’s a flower shop few blocks away, you can buy some next time.”

Sanghyuk stills for a moment, and doesn’t give him a response and he goes back to the kitchen. Jaehwan thinks there’s something wrong.

“I’m sorry if I didn’t get to cook that much, I was a little busy earlier.” Sanghyuk says, bringing a tray of bowls to the table. Jaehwan offers to help, but he declines, telling him to just sit there and wait. “I’m glad you have time tonight.”

“It’s been a while.” Jaehwan says, his hands on his knees. He tries not to be awkward with him, sounding enthusiastic.

“It is. I haven’t heard from you for a while. All I know is you’re locking yourself up in your office, having lots of meetings. Is this about your boy group debuting next year?”

It’s not that, Jaehwan wants to say, but stops himself. He’s been locking himself up in his office for an entirely different reason. “Yeah, you can say that. I really can’t say anything.”

Sanghyuk finishes preparing the table, and sits in front of Jaehwan. “Let’s eat.”

Jaehwan says a soft thanks, and starts eating. It is a different meal from the past meals Sanghyuk cooked for him before – he’s right, it’s not that much – but it is still delicious. “By the way, did you record your soundtrack well?”

“Yeah. It was better than what I expected. Minhyuk and Hyunsik really helped me a lot.” Sanghyuk says, a little smile on his face. Jaehwan misses seeing it on him. It’s been a while, indeed. “I never thought I’d be recording in a studio, for a song that will be released soon. It’s all because of you.”

It seems like an invisible wall breaks between them, with Sanghyuk now beaming so widely at him and that smile quickly fades away, like he just said something he shouldn’t have. He goes back to eating, avoiding his stare. The atmosphere becomes tense. Jaehwan really wants to ask what’s bothering him, but it feels like he’s not in the right place to ask. So he just proceeds on eating, and waits for Sanghyuk to speak again.

Sanghyuk clears his throat. “I want to tell you something actually.”

Jaehwan nods. His stupid heart begins to thump so loudly again. “Go ahead.”

“I’m going home.”

Jaehwan looks down at his food, letting Sanghyuk’s words sink in. He puts down his chopsticks and closes his eyes for a moment.

“I’m really sorry. But I’ve never changed my mind. I’m not going to sign with your company.” Sanghyuk continues, and it feels like there’s something clawing at his heart. “I’ve already packed up, I’m leaving tomorrow afternoon after saying good bye to them.”

He wants Sanghyuk to stop speaking. It’s enough, he doesn’t have to explain everything he has to do before leaving Jaehwan for good. He’s hurting, but he can’t tell Sanghyuk that. The other doesn’t have to know that he’s a sore loser.

“I also called Junghwan earlier. I’ll take Georgia out.” Sanghyuk mutters. He looks like he also lost his appetite, gripping at the edge of the table. “Thank you for everything you’ve done for me, CEO Lee. I have to admit that I will cherish this opportunity you gave me. Like you said, it isn’t easy. I can’t just pick this chance up in the streets. Thank you so, so much.”

Jaehwan still doesn’t know how to answer, so he chooses the best thing he can do: escape. “I have to go.”

“CEO Lee.” Sanghyuk calls out, as soon as he reaches the front door.

“I’ll ask Wonshik to bring you home tomorrow.” He stammers, but still keeping his guard up.

“You don’t have to, I bought train tickets yesterday –”

“Can you please listen to me, Sanghyuk?” Jaehwan snaps, pulling his hair out. He can’t do this anymore. “For the last time, please.”

Sanghyuk just nods at him, and suddenly he feels sad. Really, really sad.


	7. VII

Wonshik bursts into the office and sees Jaehwan tearing a paper, a blank look on his face. He just received the news today, coming from Sanghyuk, and well he can’t really believe it. He thought Sanghyuk will be staying with them. What did his helpless boss do again?

“Sanghyuk is leaving today?”

Jaehwan looks up at him, shreds of paper messing his table and the floor. “Yes, please take him home.”

“Why did you let him go?” Wonshik approaches his table, exasperated. “You didn’t do anything to make him stay? Did you even ask him why he still doesn’t want to sign with us?”

“It wasn’t even planning to ask him about the contract last night.” Jaehwan laughs, but he sounds empty. Weak, defeated, sad. Honestly, Wonshik is not used to seeing him like that. The proud and arrogant Lee Jaehwan is definitely missing right now. “Just do what I say. Bring him home safely.”

“Did you, at least, tell him you like him?”

“I don’t like Sanghyuk! Why do all of you think I like Sanghyuk?” Jaehwan scowls, crumpling the remaining paper in his hands. Wonshik tries not to squirm in his spot. Up until now, Jaehwan is still consistent on denying that he doesn’t like Sanghyuk. “And Wonshikie, aren’t I being too lenient on you?”

“Sorry, sir.” Wonshik sighs. He just watches as Jaehwan continues on tearing the paper, the blank look on his face is back. He’s obviously hopeless.

  

***

 

After a week, Sanghyuk’s soundtrack is released at music sites, under the name ‘HYUK’. Jaehwan had never talked about it with Sanghyuk, realized that they have to use a fake name when Wonshik brought it up a day later after Sanghyuk left.

It ranked number one in all music sites – an all-kill – knowing that it’s a soundtrack for Sungjae’s successful Monday-Tuesday drama. But another reason for that is the mysterious singer who kept all the people curious, going through all search sites and finding no information about him.

Jaehwan still refuses to listen to the soundtrack, afraid that listening to him will just bring him back to the memories he wants to forget.

It’s hard dragging himself to work every day, knowing that there’s actually nothing to look forward each day. He just wants to lie down on his bed and do meetings via skype. He can do that, he’s the CEO. But he has to be professional, and he doesn’t want everyone to know that he’s miserable.

It feels really empty, it seems like Sanghyuk took a part from his heart to bring to the shore, his real home. The quiet, lonely apartment was never his home, just a temporary shelter Jaehwan forced him to live in.

“You have an exclusive interview with the E magazine’s EIC, later at 2pm. Then you have a dinner appointment with –”

There’s a familiar song playing in the building, and it even though it’s just the intro, Jaehwan knows it all too well. He stops walking, Wonshik colliding with his back. He just stands there at the hallway, staring, waiting until he hears the singer’s melodious voice.

Then it hits him.

Jaehwan wants Sanghyuk back. He wants him to go back to him. He misses him so much. He doesn’t want to live like this – sad and desperate – he has to bring him back here and make him stay.

“I have to go to Sanghyuk.” He mutters, and with large steps he goes for the exit. Wonshik calls out for him, but he ignores him. He’s about to open his car when Wonshik grabs him by his arm.

“What are you doing, Sir? Why are you going to Sanghyuk? You have an interview today!” Wonshik looks like he’s going to pop a vein, and Jaehwan understands. He’s been harsh on him these past few days.

“I have to bring him back here.” Jaehwan says, holding at his keys so tightly he might break it. He’s already wasted so much time.

“He didn’t even sign the contract while he’s here! Why do you think it will make a difference this time?”

“No, I don’t care about that goddamn contract. I just want him back!”

Wonshik pulls his face down with his hand, frustrated. “What? Are you going to tell him now that you like him?”

Jaehwan glares at Wonshik for a moment, before yelling, “Yes! I’m going to tell him that I like him!”

Wonshik doesn’t stop him this time, shell-shocked by his outburst. He revs up his way to Sanghyuk’s house. He doesn’t care about anything else anymore, he just wants Sanghyuk.

He reaches the forest, and surprisingly he doesn’t get lost this time, finally arriving at Sanghyuk’s house.

But the whole place looks deserted, he can’t even see or hear the animals that used to walk around here. Georgia is also nowhere to be found. “Sanghyuk?”

He goes for the door, calling Sanghyuk’s name again, and when there’s no answer, he slides the door open. He freezes on his spot when he sees it.

The walls are bare, the floors are dusty, the furniture is all covered with cloth.

Sanghyuk is gone. 

 

***

 

“Apparently, his aunt came and asked him to live with her.” Wonshik says. “The old lady doesn’t know Sanghyuk’s aunt’s name, and Sanghyuk never told them where he’s going to live.”

Jaehwan pulls his knees closer to his chest, fiddling with the hem of his shorts. He’s tired and sleepy, unable to rest last night because Sanghyuk’s phone is out of reach. And that makes him really worried. He’s not even in the mood to eat. “Search for him, everywhere. I just want to see him.”

“He turned off his phone so we can’t really locate him as of now.” Wonshik explains softly, sitting in front of him. “But we will search everywhere for him. Don’t worry.”

Jaehwan is thankful that his assistant understands what he’s been going through. He feels really awful, and there’s no one to blame but himself.

“Do you want me to call Hakyeon? Or Junghwan?”

Jaehwan shakes his head slowly. “I need Sanghyuk.”

  

***

 

It’s a busy day in the coffee shop. There are too many university students visiting the shop, either for hanging out or studying. There’s almost no break, he has to stay at the cash register, get orders and make coffees. He’s not complaining though, he gets his own salary, and he gets to live for free in his aunt’s house.

Sanghyuk didn’t expect for his aunt to visit him just as he came back from the city, asking him to live with her. She’s the only family Sanghyuk has, so he agreed and moved out a few days after.

She gave him a job in the coffee shop, and even offered to help him apply in a university. Sanghyuk said he’s going to think about it, but whenever he sees lots of students in the shop and how they study so hard, Sanghyuk felt really envious. So he decided that he will pursue studying again, planning to take a business course.

He never told his aunt about recording a song in JLee Entertainment, thinking that she doesn’t have to know. In the first place he wanted to be anonymous. He gets to listen to it in radio and it’s a part of the coffee shop’s playlist. It also took him lots of control not to tell every customer and his co-workers that it’s his song they’re playing, besides no one will believe him. It’s better that HYUK stays faceless.

And also a week after he moved out from his house by the shore, he sees someone approaching the register. He’s looking down, a cap almost covering his face. It looks like he’s a celebrity. It’s seldom to have a famous person visiting their shop, knowing that there are lots of students that can recognize them.

“Uh, one caramel macchiato. The largest size. With lots of whipped cream on top.”

Sanghyuk knows that voice. He leans in, whispering, “Hongbin?” 

Hongbin finally looks up, and his eyes widens when he sees him. “Oh my god, Sanghyuk.”

Hongbin initially planned to take out his coffee, but since he saw Sanghyuk, catching up is more important. Sanghyuk lets him hide behind the register.

“Someone from JLee told me you left two weeks ago.” Hongbin says, pouting. “You never called me, Sanghyuk. Even when you came back. You’re lucky I’m not mad at you.”

“Sorry.” Sanghyuk replies, bringing a cup of coffee to the counter and shouting a customer’s name. “I got really busy with moving out of CEO Lee’s apartment, and coming back here. I forgot to turn on my phone.”

“You better call me from now on.” Hongbin says, covering his face with his cap when the customer appears to get his coffee.

“When I remember, I will. I promise. I can give you our telephone number so you can call me anytime.” Sanghyuk chuckles. “I’m going to study again.”

“Oh, good thing then.” Hongbin says. They’re quiet for a while, then, “Does CEO Lee know you’re here?”

Sanghyuk shakes his head. The last time he saw Jaehwan, it was in the apartment. He looked really disappointed and the guilt never left Sanghyuk. He also refused to see him when he wanted to say good bye. It only means that Jaehwan doesn’t want to see him ever again. “I don’t think he has to know. He probably wouldn’t care.”

“Was he angry? When you declined his offer the last time?”

“I’m not really sure. He just looked more disappointed than angry.” Sanghyuk says. He wants to see him again, to finally explain everything, but he’s afraid. He’s afraid that this time around, Jaehwan will decline.

“He really liked you.” Hongbin says.

Sanghyuk laughs, wiping his hands with a cloth. “Yes, he even did everything unimaginable just to have me sing for his company. He really liked me and my voice that much.”

“No, no that’s not what I meant.” Hongbin waves his hand. Sanghyuk stops laughing. “He liked you, as in…oh dear god how do I explain this.”

“What?” Sanghyuk asks softly. He can’t hear himself over the loud thumping on his chest.

“I mean, he liked you as a man? Not because he sees you as a potential money bringer, but because you’re…you. He liked you as you.”

Sanghyuk stares at him in disbelief, then turns around to play with the espresso machine’s buttons. “What are you talking about, Hongbin. Don’t tell things like that.”

“Have you seen him look at you?” Hongbin says, tugging at his pants. “He looked at you like you’re the best thing happened in his entire life.”

“Because I looked like money.” Sanghyuk stammers.

“Don’t act dumb, Sanghyuk. You know what I’m talking about.”

What was that supposed to mean? That Jaehwan liked him in a romantic sense? He has never thought about it before, because he thought all Jaehwan did for him were all acts of kindness and his ways to convince him to sign with his company. But not this, he never thought of Jaehwan taking care of him because he liked him.

He shakes his head to disagree with Hongbin, but more like he shakes his head to remove the thoughts in his mind.

“Do you want a cupcake? It’s on house.”

Hongbin nods, finally dropping the topic. He smiles knowingly. Sanghyuk can ignore about it for now. 

 

***

 

“Hey, we’ve ran out of tissues. I’m going out to buy.” He says to his co-worker, who only gives him a thumbs-up before he removes his apron and steps out. It’s only a few minutes walk to the grocery, and he enjoys the cold air while walking. Summer is about to end.

Sanghyuk sees dogs with their owners at the park, and wonders if he should buy a lamb meat flavored jerky for Georgia.

After buying what he needs, he decides to buy an ice cream at the park, craving for something sweet. But there’s a kid tiptoeing to a tree branch, looking up at the toy airplane stuck on the leaves. He approaches him, putting his hand on his shoulder.

“What are you doing?”

The kid points at his toy, his lips trembling. “Can you help me, mister? My toy is up there.”

The branch is not that high - Sanghyuk can reach it without standing on his toes - so he smiles at the kid and gets the toy for him.

“Thank you!” The kid screams, hugging his toy. Sanghyuk laughs, ruffling his hair.

“You’re welcome. You can go now.”

The kid runs away after giving him a wide smile. When Sanghyuk turns around, he freezes on his spot.

Jaehwan is standing right in front of him, and he looks distraught as he comes closer, blinking. Sanghyuk watches as Jaehwan lifts his hand and holds his cheek lightly.

“You’re here. You’re really here.” 

 

***

 

“Jaehwan.”

Jaehwan ignores Hakyeon, just staring at the window, frowning. Ever since the day he realized that he likes Sanghyuk, he often sees him everywhere, sometimes standing just beside him, sometimes lying on the bed with him, sometimes looking at him while he’s in a meeting. But when he blinks again, he disappears like a bubble, and Jaehwan has never felt this desperate before.

“I think I’m going crazy.” He says for the nth time that week, clutching at the armrest. “I’m too late, he’s nowhere to be found.”

“Hey, it’s okay.” Hakyeon says. “He made friends here. I don’t think he’s the type of person to cut ties with them. Especially you.”

“Would it make a difference?” Jaehwan asks out of nowhere. Hakyeon listens. “If I tried holding his hand before, would I realize it sooner?”

“Hey, it’s not your fault for not realizing it sooner.” Hakyeon says, his hand at the back of his head, patting him gently.

It feels comforting, to have someone who understands you for what you are. He might have pissed off Hakyeon most of the times, but he’s always there whenever Jaehwan needs him.

He doesn’t want to go back to his office, so he chooses to walk around the park, watching the kids running around, the dogs walking with their owners - what is Georgia doing right now? Is he playing with Sanghyuk right now?

There’s rock lying on the ground, so he kicks it as he walks, feeling really bored. His life has been boring since Sanghyuk left him.

There’s a laugh, then, “You’re welcome. You can go now.”

Jaehwan looks up, familiar with that voice. And there, in front of him, is Sanghyuk with a kid. When he turns around, he stops, the smile on his face slowly fading.

No, maybe his eyes are tricking him again. This is just imagination because he feels really bored. Jaehwan closes and opens his eyes. Sanghyuk is still there, unmoving. He steps closer, and the other just stares at him. He lifts his hand, holding his cheek with the faintest of touch. He’s real. He’s there. He found Sanghyuk. 

“You’re here. You’re really here.”


	8. VIII

“I’ll just bring these to the staff room. Do you want something?”

Jaehwan smiles awkwardly. “Give me your best coffee.”

“Sure.”

Jaehwan looks around at the coffee shop, the quietness puts him at ease. He has never felt this relieved before, he thought he would never see Sanghyuk again. The thought scared him that it took away his focus most of the time, but now he doesn’t have to look for him. And he’s not going to let him go this time.

He watches Sanghyuk preparing coffee, his back facing him. He missed him a lot, so much that he can sit there forever just watching him. He laughs at himself then, he’s never imagined himself being this crazy in -

“Here.” Sanghyuk puts down a cup of coffee. “It’s our best homemade.”

“Thanks.” Jaehwan mumbles, taking a sip. Sanghyuk sits down in front of him, his hands clasped on the table. “So, how are you doing?”

Sanghyuk looks up, suprised that he initiated a conversation. “Uhm, I’m okay. It’s more than a month since I moved here. My aunt asked me to stay with her, so I said yes.”

Sanghyuk’s been here for more than a month and never contacted him. Jaehwan looks down, holding his cup a little tight. It’s hot, but it’s nothing compared to the feeling of being neglected. “I see. So you work here?”

“For the meantime. After my aunt comes back from her vacation I’m going to apply in a university. This coffee shop’s hers, by the way.”

“Oh, really.” Jaehwan mumbles. “Good for you.”

There’s a silence for a while. “How are you?”

Jaehwan glances at him, then goes back to his coffee. “I’m okay.”

It’s a lie, obviously. He wonders if Sanghyuk notices it.

“And your song’s still on the number one spot.” Jaehwan says to shift the topic from himself. He kind of said it a little bit louder to show his enthusiasm, but Sanghyuk leans in and covers his mouth.

“No one knows about me.” Sanghyuk mumbles. There are people looking at them right now, so he puts down his hand and sits back on his seat. “Even my aunt doesn’t know that I stayed here for a month to record a song.”

Jaehwan hears someone saying, _isn’t he Lee Jaehwan?_ but doesn’t make a move to approach him. He’s well-known, but he’s not a celebrity. “You left without getting paid, though.”

“Seriously?” Sanghyuk chuckles, and god, Jaehwan missed his laugh. “I really didn’t know the song would hit big.”

“It did. It even exceeded our expectations. People are still talking about you.”

“Honestly, I don’t really know what to say.” Sanghyuk says. The smile disappears on his face, making him worry. “I actually owe you an explanation.”

“What?”

“Why I don’t want to sign in any company.” Sanghyuk says. “All you’ve done for me, I should have told you everything, at least.”

Jaehwan wants to know, of course, he’s been dying to know that since day one. But right now it feels like it isn’t his place. “You don’t have to –”

“No, it’s okay.” Sanghyuk assures, pushing his chair forward. “Okay, so. My mother was an actress, she got really nice roles and even became a cover of magazines.”

That is not what Jaehwan expected to hear, but he doesn’t say it out loud. He lets Sanghyuk continue.

“She met my father in a show, he was one of the production crew. She was a rising star back then, but she fell in love with my father. They got married and had me. But it wasn’t really a happy ending. My mom’s popularity fizzled out, and it started misunderstandings between my parents, until my father decided to leave us. Mom ruined herself until she…”

Sanghyuk’s voice turns weaker, and he wants to reach up and hold his hand. “Sanghyuk -”

“I’m fine.” Sanghyuk takes a deep breath. “Grandma was really devastated that time my mom died, but she took care of me, until she couldn’t stand anymore. She made me promise before she died that I would never, ever follow my mom’s path. She said popularity can only ruin my life, like how it did to my mom. I love her so much I will never do anything to disappoint her.”

That’s the end of his story, and he looks up at Jaehwan, eyes brimming with tears. He sniffles, wiping his unshed tears with the back of his hand.

“I’m really sorry. This is your first time seeing me cry.” Sanghyuk chokes out.

“No, don’t be.” Jaehwan pats his pockets discreetly, and curses inwardly when he realizes he doesn’t have his handkerchief with him. “I don’t know what to say actually, but I understand. Now I finally understand. Thank you for telling me this.”

“No, thank you for always understanding me.” Sanghyuk says with finality. “By the way, my aunt won’t be coming home until the next two weeks, so I want to invite you to dinner? Tonight if you’re not busy.”

“I’m not busy!” Jaehwan says excitedly. He clears his throat when Sanghyuk blinks at him. “I mean I don’t have anything to do for the rest of the day, so yeah I’m accepting your invitation.”

“Cool.” Sanghyuk says, standing up. “Let me get a paper and I’ll write my address and number for you.”

When Jaehwan comes back at his company, he barges in Wonshik’s office, startling the other.

“I found Sanghyuk!” He exclaims, raising his hands at the air.

“What? You found him?” Wonshik asks, his hands at his chest. He looks like he’s shocked by the amount of energy Jaehwan is emitting right now. “How?”

“A twist of fate made us meet again.” He grins, taking out a piece of paper from his pocket. Sanghyuk’s address and telephone number. “Also, his aunt is on a vacation, and he invited me to dinner at his house. Of course, after a little persuasion I accepted it.”

A smirk grows on Wonshik’s face, and Jaehwan giggles on his seat, covering his face in embarrassment.

“You just hit the jackpot!”

  

***

 

“You’re so handsome, Lee Jaehwan.” Jaehwan watches his own reflection on his phone’s screen, and winks. “You’re going to sweep Sanghyuk off his feet tonight.”

The woman standing beside him in the elevator stares at him, a weird look on her face, but Jaehwan just smiles at her sweetly and goes back to admiring himself. He’s going to the flower shop tonight before going to Sanghyuk’s house, and he’s going to give him the most beautiful rose ever. Because he deserves it, and Jaehwan is going to confess tonight.

He reaches Sanghyuk’s house ten minutes early, and knocks on the door with the rose at his back.

“You’re early.” Sanghyuk says, opening the door widely for him. “Good thing I have everything ready now.”

“My arrival is just perfect.” Jaehwan says, finally showing the rose to Sanghyuk. “For you.”

Sanghyuk stares at the rose in Jaehwan’s hands, his ears red. “You really don’t have to give me one.”

“Oh, come on. Table decoration.” Jaehwan says. Sanghyuk mumbles a thanks and accepts the flower.

“I’ll show you the whole house.” Sanghyuk leads him inside and shows him the whole house. It looks nice, there’s a homey feel to it, and wonders how his future house with his future partner will look like. If his future partner will be Sanghyuk, then it will be perfect.

Georgia welcomes him with a bark, and he crouches to pat his head. “Hi, it’s nice to see you, Georgia. You’ve gotten bigger!”

Sanghyuk then brings him to the dining area, where the food is already prepared.

“It’s been a while since the last time I got to taste your food.” Jaehwan says, placing a meat on top of Sanghyuk’s rice.

“Yeah, the last time wasn’t so…” Sanghyuk trails off, looking down at his bowl.

“We should forget about that.” Jaehwan says, and a smile creeps up on Sanghyuk’s face.

The night is just starting to get better.

  

***

 

Sanghyuk puts down a bowl of fruits on the coffee table, and Jaehwan chuckles as soon as he sees it.

“Thanks.” He says, shoving a fruit in his mouth.

Sanghyuk looks at him, and when Jaehwan turns around he quickly avoids his eyes, his face turning red. When did the awkwardness between them start happening? And why can’t he take his eyes away from Jaehwan?

“You’re so cute.”

Sanghyuk chokes on his fruit, and Jaehwan is quick to offer him water and a gentle rub on his back. He’s suddenly aware of their closeness. “I’m okay, CEO Lee.”

“Jaehwan. Just call me Jaehwan. I’m not your boss anymore – well I was never your boss, but still.”

“Okay.” Sanghyuk feels somewhat giddy, finally saying Jaehwan’s name for the first time. “Jaehwan.”

There’s no response, but Jaehwan doesn’t back away, and now he’s starting to get nervous. He still avoids looking at him, and when he catches at glimpse of them on the blank television screen, Jaehwan is watching him carefully.

Then there’s a hand covering his own, and his heart skips a beat. “What are you doing?”

“I want to know how it feels like, to hold your hand.” Jaehwan whispers, his tone now completely different from what he’s used at. It’s low, serious and beautiful. “I should have held your hand a long time ago.”

Sanghyuk looks down as Jaehwan laces their fingers together. He can’t pull away, he likes the feeling of Jaehwan’s soft and warm hand against his. “What do you mean?”

It takes too long for Jaehwan to answer, so he looks up. Jaehwan is now staring at his eyes, and he looks so nervous. “I really have to say this to you before I throw up.”

“What –”

“I like you, Sanghyuk.” Jaehwan says, his voice trembling. “I don’t know when it started, but there were times before that I wanted to stay beside you, hear you sing for me, or cook a delicious meal for just the two of us. I thought I was just being nice because you were alone back then, but when you decided to leave, I was so disappointed with myself because I wanted you to stay by my side and yet I couldn’t do anything.”

Sanghyuk has never gotten a confession before. Is this how it feels like? Is he supposed to be shaking with anticipation too? He feels Jaehwan’s hand squeezing his.

“When you finally left, I completely lost it. I went to your old house and you weren’t there and I thought I was going crazy. I wanted to see you so desperately and tried looking for you everywhere. I was too late, and afraid I’m going to lost you forever without saying how much I like you.”

So Hongbin is right? That Jaehwan likes him? “Jaehwan –”

“It’s okay if you don’t feel the same way yet, I can –”

The telephone rings, and Sanghyuk turns around to look at it. He’s a little thankful for it, because he doesn’t really know what to say to him. He looks at Jaehwan but he just smiles – it’s obviously fake – releasing his hand.

“Hello, Sanghyuk? It’s Hongbin.”

“Hongbin?” He turns around and sees Jaehwan looking at him in disbelief. “Why are you calling?”

“Are you free tonight? I’m craving for pork belly but my manager won’t let me so I’m sneaking out.”

“I can’t. I’m sorry.” Sanghyuk tries to whisper, but he knows Jaehwan can still hear him. “I’ll just see you next time, okay? Bye!”

“Sang–”

Sanghyuk ends the call and Jaehwan stands up, his face now blank.

“Lee Hongbin?”

Sanghyuk nods. “Yeah.”

“So he knows that you’re here. He even knows your telephone number.” Jaehwan puts his hands on his hips, looking up at the ceiling. “So you told him that you came back but you never once called me? So you’ve been seeing him all this time?”

“Jaehwan, listen to me.” Sanghyuk raises his hands up. “There’s nothing between us. Hongbin found me at the coffee shop by accident, and he was just about to buy coffee that time. I never called him, I never called any of you when I came back here.”

Jaehwan scowls. “It still doesn’t make a difference! You met him by accident, alright. But the thing is, you never called me. And you’ve been staying here for more than a month. If we didn’t see each other at the park, were you even planning to see me? Am I really that unimportant to you?”

“No, it’s not that –”

“Don’t lie to me, Sanghyuk. Don’t even try to sugarcoat things. Did you even treat me as a friend at least?”

“Wow, you’re so frustrating!” Sanghyuk half-screams.

“Oh am I now? Fine!” Jaehwan screams back, and now he’s storming out of the house.

Sanghyuk pulls at his hair, watching the door slams shut, and sits back on the couch.

God, Jaehwan is so unpredictable.


	9. IX

“You’re sulking.”

Sanghyuk isn’t sulking. Jaehwan hasn’t been calling him for days, of course he’s not sulking. He glances at Namjoo, his coworker, then goes back to wiping the counters. “No, I’m not.”

“You had a fight with your girlfriend?”

“I don’t have a girlfriend.”

“Boyfriend?”

“I don’t have a boyfriend!” He yells. Luckily, the shop is already closed for the night and no one heard him. Namjoo is a laughing mess now, clapping like a seal. “Stop laughing.”

“Oh god, you’re so cute, Sanghyuk. Relax. I’m just playing around.” She says. Sanghyuk rolls his eyes. She leans in then, whispering, “I didn’t know you’re friends with Lee Jaehwan?”

“Huh?” Sanghyuk blinks. Then he remembers that he brought him last week to the coffee shop. “Ah, that. I met him when I was busking in the streets before.”

“He gave you an offer?” Namjoo asks, shaking his arm. “Wow, Sanghyuk. I don’t know you sing!”

“He didn’t give me an offer.” Sanghyuk lies. It’s better than telling her the truth. “We just shared the same taste in music.”

“Okay.” She’s not convinced, but she doesn’t ask anymore. “Can you land me an audition for his company?”

“I don’t think CEO Lee accepts trainees by word of mouth or something.” Sanghyuk says. He goes to the sink to wipe some plates dry. “Get it on your own.”

Namjoo rolls her eyes at him, and Sanghyuk wishes she leaves him alone, but she doesn’t. “Speaking of Lee Jaehwan, do you happen to know if he’s dating Ahn Heeyeon?”

Sanghyuk almost drops the plate he’s holding. “What? Ahn Heeyeon? Who is she?”

“Ahn Heeyeon the model.” Namjoo takes out her phone, then shows him an article. “She’s Lee Jaehwan’s date at the awards night tonight. They’re the number one topic.”

The words are blurred, but he can clearly see the girl – Ahn Heeyeon the model – clinging on Jaehwan’s arm. He tries so hard not to scoff, removing his eyes from the phone. “I don’t know her.”

“She’s really lucky if Lee Jaehwan is dating her.” Namjoo says. Sanghyuk continues wiping the plates and ignoring her. “I mean, he’s so handsome. And also he’s one of the richest bachelors in the country.”

 _He’s also arrogant and unpredictable and frustrating. But he’s also nice, caring and sweet._ Sanghyuk shakes his head before he can say it out loud. “You can go home now. I’ll do the inventory.”

Sanghyuk opens the door of the stock room, once Namjoo leaves the shop. He frowns at the sacks of sugar, before grabbing a clipboard.

“You just said you like me.” He grumbles. “And then I’ll see you with a girl?”

He grips at the clipboard that it might break on his hands.

“You said you almost went crazy when I left. But you stopped contacting me.” He adds, writing with much force than necessary. “Are you just playing with me, Lee Jaehwan? Are you?!”

Sanghyuk is still grumbling when he closes the shop and rides on his bicycle. Lee Jaehwan is a liar. He says he likes him but he goes out with another person. He even has the nerve to tell him that he’s a liar when he’s the one lying. He doesn’t know how to understand him anymore.

He’s way too deep into his thoughts when he suddenly sees a car fast approaching his way. His eyes widen, swerving his bicycle, accidentally letting go of his brakes. The next thing he sees is the starless night sky, and people hovering over him. There’s also a searing pain on his leg.

  

***

 

“He should be contacting me now. He should say sorry to me!” Jaehwan sits on his couch cross-legged, waiting for his phone to ring. He’s tired from the awards night, but he can’t sleep. He misses Sanghyuk of course, so much he can even call him if he can’t take it anymore. But he shouldn’t do that. Sanghyuk needs to know that he’s wrong and should be the one calling him.

It’s already disappointing to know that Hongbin got to see him first before Jaehwan. But the worst thing is he confessed to him and he only got rejected indirectly. He doesn’t really deserve this, but Sanghyuk – Jaehwan doesn’t know for how long he’s going to ignore him. Probably it won’t take that long. And he hates that feeling that he’s the one who does all the chasing, but he likes him so much it’s okay. It’s just that Sanghyuk really needs to know that he’s being serious about all this.

His phone suddenly rings and he quickly grabs it from the table. Sanghyuk’s name appears on the screen, and after five rings he answers it. Finally, Sanghyuk got into his senses.

“Hello?”

“Jaehwan?”

Jaehwan smiles, his face feeling warm. He loves how his name rolls of Sanghyuk’s tongue. “Yeah?”

“Are you busy?” Sanghyuk asks, and he suddenly sounds so weak that Jaehwan begins to worry.

“What happened?” Jaehwan begins to worry, standing up to pace around his living room. Sanghyuk is scaring him. “Sanghyuk?”

“I got into an accident. I’m on the hospital right now –”

Jaehwan stops in his tracks, his heart beating loudly in his chest. He grabs his car keys and locks his apartment. “Where? Tell me where you are right now. I’m coming.”

  

***

 

Sanghyuk groans as the nurse helps him lie on bed, pain spreading all over his body. Unfortunately he can’t go home yet, as he has to undergo some tests. His head hit the concrete, making him unconscious even before the ambulance came to rescue him. He didn’t really expect it to be a bad fall, thought he avoided the car but he lost his brakes and collided with the curb.

His aunt is probably sleeping at this hour, and the only person that came up next in his mind was Jaehwan. He knows that he might be busy, but he has no choice. And Jaehwan answered and said he’s coming.

He closes his eyes, trying to shut the noise down, but to no avail. He dislikes hospitals. The feeling of being sick just makes him feel sicker.

He hears footsteps, and thinks it’s just the nurse. He opens his eyes, and sees Jaehwan looking very worried. “Sanghyuk?”

“Jaehwan.” he tries to sit up, but Jaehwan just pushes him down on his shoulders gently. “You came.”

“How long have you been here? You should have called me sooner.” he says, sitting beside his bed. “You made me worry.”

“Sorry. I called you as soon as I woke up. I was unconscious.” he replies hoarsely. He’s really thirsty. “I can’t call my aunt right now, so I called you instead.”

“It’s okay. You want me to fill up papers for you?” Jaehwan asks, and his voice is so soft it relaxes him. Sanghyuk nods, so Jaehwan stands up. “Okay. Are you getting discharged tonight?”

“No. They said I have to undergo some tests later because I had a really bad fall. Maybe tomorrow.”

Jaehwan takes a deep breath. “I’ll get you a private room.”

Sanghyuk grabs his wrist, startling Jaehwan. “I’m okay.”

Jaehwan smiles a little, and he leans down, cupping Sanghyuk’s face. They’re too close, and if Jaehwan leans closer their lips would touch. “You’re uncomfortable here. I can see it on your face. Don’t worry, okay? I’ll come back.”

Sanghyuk just nods, defeated. He doesn’t even have any courage to argue with him. “Okay.” 

 

***

 

Sanghyuk wakes up at past seven in the morning, in a quiet room. He never got a proper sleep since he underwent some tests last night, and his head is throbbing. He gets the results later, and he hopes that there’s nothing wrong with him – he doesn’t feel anything weird aside from the pain on his injured leg and scratches – so he can go home today.

He turns beside him and sees Jaehwan sleeping soundly, his head cradled in his arms and his hand holding his. Sanghyuk remembers everything from last night, he called Jaehwan and asked him to come. He sighs, his heart swelling in his chest at the sight of him. He looks like an angel.

Without moving that much he looks for his phone, and finds it inside the drawer beside his bed. He’s been using the phone since he met Jaehwan last week, and he’s lucky he got his aunt’s number before she left for her vacation. He dials her number, and after a few rings she answers.

“Hello? Sanghyuk?”

“Good morning.” He greets. His aunt chuckles at the other line.

“You want me to buy something for you?” She asks, her voice raspy. He probably woke her up. “How’s the coffee shop?”

The coffee shop. Right. “I don’t think I can open the shop today. I got into an accident last night –”

“What?” She sounds more awake now. “Why didn’t you call me last night?”

“I don’t want to disturb your sleep.”

“Oh, Sanghyuk.” She sighs. “Are you okay? Is it serious?”

“No, I don’t think so. But they ran some tests just in case. If there’s nothing wrong I’m going home today.”

“I’m getting the earliest train ticket today. And I’ll inform the others that the shop is closed for the day.” She says. “By the way, who signed up as your guardian?”

Sanghyuk glances at Jaehwan who’s still sleeping. He pouts when he sleeps. “My friend. I called him last night.”

“Alright. Message me the hospital’s address and I’ll be there before the sun sets.” She reminds, and there’s shuffling at the background. “And Sanghyuk, don’t think of anything anymore. You’re not disturbing my vacation or whatever. You’re my family and you’re more important.”

Sanghyuk smiles, feeling emotional. “Thank you. And can you buy me grapes?”

She laughs, then, “Sure thing. See you.”

Sanghyuk puts down the phone, and he must have woke Jaehwan up because he’s slowly lifting his head.

“You’re awake.” He says, rubbing his eyes. He looks really cute. “Are you feeling well?”

“A little better.” Sanghyuk answers. He slowly pulls his hand from Jaehwan, and the latter frowns. “I just called my aunt and she’s coming home this afternoon.”

“I see.” Jaehwan says, and he takes out his phone. “Do you want something to eat? I can ask Wonshik to –”

“Thank you for helping me, Jaehwan.” Sanghyuk cuts him off. The reason why he’s here suddenly comes up in his mind. He doesn’t blame Jaehwan, but he was clearly thinking of him before he got into an accident. “But you can leave now. You have work to do, and my aunt’s coming anyways.”

“I can stay here with you until she comes back.” Jaehwan mutters, and just like Sanghyuk, he sounds tired. “I’ll just get you something to eat.”

Sanghyuk makes an exasperated sigh. “Jaehwan, please leave.”

“I’m not going to leave you alone.”

“I said –”

“What’s your problem, Sanghyuk?” Jaehwan snaps, standing up. Sanghyuk looks up and the hurt on Jaehwan’s face is evident. “I don’t want to argue with you, please. I know we’re on some sort of misunderstanding from that night and we’re both upset but please, rest. We’re going to talk later.”

“No, Jaehwan.” Sanghyuk retorts. He doesn’t want to talk later. If Jaehwan doesn’t want to leave, then fine. They’re going to talk right now. “You’re just making things difficult for the both of us.”

“I’m at fault here?” Jaehwan points at himself. “I’m making things difficult for you? No, Sanghyuk. You were the one who made my life difficult.”

“Did I tell you to look for me?” Sanghyuk argues, and from the way Jaehwan’s face contorts into something akin to hurt he knows that he said the wrong thing. He opens his mouth again, but Jaehwan turns around to go for the door. “Jaehwan, I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, you don’t get it because you don’t like me.” Jaehwan chokes out. Sanghyuk’s heart breaks at the sound. “I understand that.”

He doesn’t make a move to leave his room, so Sanghyuk is thankful for that. He still has to explain himself. “I never contacted you because I thought you don’t want to see me again. You were disappointed because I didn’t sign a contract with you after all you did for me.”

Jaehwan faces him again, his face red. “God, Sanghyuk. Why would you think of that? I was disappointed when you left, yes, but not because you didn’t sign that goddamn contract. I was more disappointed at the fact that I might not see you again. Have I ever mentioned the contract since I found you weeks ago? No! Because I don’t fucking care about that anymore. I only needed you.”

“That’s bullshit coming from you.” Sanghyuk replies, and it feels powerless to be lying on the hospital bed, his leg in pain. “You need me? But last night I saw a girl clinging on your arm at the awards night. Make up your mind, Jaehwan! You can’t play those tricks on me.”

Jaehwan stares at him, blinking, and Sanghyuk thinks he has won but there’s a smirk appearing on his face. “Heeyeon was just a date for the awards night and we’re not together. Media was just trying to make it look like we’re dating, but Heeyeon’s dating someone else. Why? Are you jealous?”

Sanghyuk wonders if he can turn much redder than that. He feels his whole face burning and he can’t move to hide from Jaehwan. “I’m not jealous. I just want you to make up your mind! I don’t know what you’re thinking! And I don’t know what your real feelings for me are!”

“You still don’t get it? I like you Sanghyuk! No – I’m falling in love with you!” Jaehwan yells, and Sanghyuk can’t even think a proper response because Jaehwan is leaning down and kissing him, soft and sweet. His lips are chapped, and he tilts his head to deepen the kiss and fuck - he’s Sanghyuk’s first kiss.

Sanghyuk pushes him weakly, and it takes him a hard squeeze on Jaehwan’s shoulder before pulling back. His own lips are trembling, but he’s not angry. He’s simply shocked and confused with his own feelings crashing down on him.

“I’m sorry.” Jaehwan says softly, and is leaning down again to kiss Sanghyuk’s forehead gently. “I’m sorry, Sanghyuk. Please don’t be mad at me.”

“I’m not mad.” Sanghyuk replies, staring at Jaehwan’s eyes. Jaehwan is really serious about his feelings and that just confirms everything on his side – why Sanghyuk is like this, why Jaehwan keeps on distracting him that made him reach up to this point, and why he wants to kiss Jaehwan again. But Sanghyuk is not ready. He’s not ready. “But –”

“I can wait until you’re ready, Sanghyuk.” Jaehwan assures, caressing his unbruised cheek. Did he see right through him? Did he also confirm Sanghyuk’s feelings for him? “We can stay this way. I don’t mind.”

Sanghyuk nods at that, closing his eyes. At least everything is clear now, they’ve finally let their frustrations out, and also Sanghyuk finally knows what – who – he wants. It’s Jaehwan.


	10. X

Sanghyuk misses Jaehwan. He misses him so terribly, but he can’t do something about it. He’s still in contact with him – short phone calls and short visits – but it is never enough. After everything that happened in the hospital he thought something between them would change, but it was the total opposite.

He’s back in the university and it makes him busy somehow, but his mind keeps on wandering back to Jaehwan and it doesn’t always end well. The big red Cs on his two recent quizzes are staring right back at him.

“What’s even holding you back?” Hongbin says, watching him bury his face on his book and groan in frustration. He can’t concentrate. “CEO Lee said he likes you, and now you’re saying you like him back, so what’s your actual problem?”

Sanghyuk lifts his head, sighing. He’s been sighing a lot these days. “I’m not ready for a relationship. Heck, I’ve never had one before. And what if I’m not good enough for him? Jaehwan’s full of life, and I’m just an ordinary kid from the shore. I’m afraid Jaehwan will get bored of me and just dump me.”

“So you’re insecure.”

“If that’s what you call that, then yes. I’m insecure.” Sanghyuk closes his books and puts it inside his bag. He doesn’t give any chance for Hongbin to speak as he stands up, startling him. “I want to drink. You’re coming with me?” 

 

***

 

A short and quiet dinner and lots of drinks later, Sanghyuk is already laughing at himself.

“Sanghyuk, stop.” Hongbin says, grabbing the almost empty glass from him, but he doesn’t budge. He’s still strong, despite being drunk. “You’re not used to drinking.”

“Yeah, I’m not.” Sanghyuk giggles, pushing his glass away from him. Hongbin feels pity for his friend. “I read from the internet that you should drink lots of water after drinking alcohol.”

“Sanghyuk –”

“Do you know Jaehwan taught me how to use the internet? I can’t believe it has the answers to everything. But –” he hiccups, and Hongbin finally notices the tears on his cheeks. “But it doesn’t have any answer to what I should do with these feelings.”

“You know what, Sanghyuk?” Hongbin puts his hand on Sanghyuk’s shoulder. “Talk to him. I can’t offer you any answer to that, neither the internet. He can only give you what you need.”

Sanghyuk asks for another drink, but Hongbin shakes his head at the bartender when he looks at him for permission. Sanghyuk protests weakly, his broken laughs turning into sniffles. “He will only laugh at me. Then – then he’ll tell me I’m ridiculous. He doesn’t even talk to me anymore, Bin. He probably thought I’m such a waste of time.”

“Don’t you trust him?”

“I do – so much.” Sanghyuk slurs, watching the ice cubes on his glass slowly melting. “But these stupid thoughts just don’t get out of my mind and I’m completely defenseless.”

  

***

 

He misses Sanghyuk so bad. And it’s been weeks. But he doesn’t want to force himself to him. He doesn’t want Sanghyuk to feel obligated to reciprocate his feelings for him. He felt it though, when he kissed him for the first time, that Sanghyuk likes him too, but he can be wrong. He could be assuming things.

That’s why he tries not to talk to him often – just short talks on the phone and short visits to the café –so he can give him some space and time to think.

Jaehwan closes his eyes to shut down the thoughts running on his mind, the thoughts of Sanghyuk finally realizing that he doesn’t like him at all. He hugs at his pillow tightly, and tries to sleep.

His phone suddenly rings, Sanghyuk’s name flashing on the screen. Jaehwan has never been this fast on answering phone calls. “Hello? Sanghyuk?”

“It’s me, Hongbin.”

Jaehwan’s face turns red, his temper quickly overpowering him. So they’re together tonight and they want Jaehwan to know?

There’s someone groaning on the other line, just like any background noise, but Jaehwan hears his own name.

“I’m sorry, CEO Lee, but Sanghyuk is quite drunk. I don’t want to call his aunt, and the next person I can only call is you.” Hongbin says, and he sounds very nervous. “He’s actually looking for you. Sanghyuk, I mean.”

“Where are you?” Jaehwan asks, throwing his blankets on the side and stands up. Hongbin says the bar’s name and its address, telling him to hurry. “I’ll be there. Tell him I’ll be there.”

When Jaehwan arrives at the bar, it’s only Hongbin and Sanghyuk who are left inside. Hongbin lets out a breath when he sees him and nudges Sanghyuk. “Hey, CEO Lee’s here.”

Sanghyuk doesn’t move, his face hidden on his arms. Jaehwan carefully lifts his head, and he sees that his cheeks are a little wet. His heart sinks in his stomach. “Did he cry?”

Hongbin nods, putting his black cap on his head. “He’s been crying. A lot.”

Jaehwan stills. “Why?”

“You should ask him that. He’s the only one who can tell you.” Hongbin says, smiling a little. “And he told me everything. Don’t worry about me, I don’t like him the way you do.”

Hongbin leaves then, and Jaehwan is left with a drunk Sanghyuk. He pats his cheeks gently to wake him up. “Sanghyuk, it’s me, Jaehwan. Let’s go home.”

Sanghyuk stirs, eyes blinking at Jaehwan. “You’re here?”

“Yeah. Let’s go home.” Jaehwan pulls him up, leading him to the door. Fortunately, Sanghyuk doesn’t let him carry all his weight.

“It’s really you? I’m not dreaming?” Sanghyuk mumbles, when Jaehwan pushes him inside his car. “You’re Jaehwan?”

“I am.” Jaehwan says, taking his phone from his pocket. He goes to the driver’s seat and decides to call his aunt. “Hello?”

“Hello? This is not Sanghyuk.”

“Ah, yes. I’m his friend, Jaehwan. I was the one who took care of him at the hospital.”

“Oh, I remember you. You’re with Sanghyuk?”

Jaehwan looks behind him, at Sanghyuk who can’t fit himself to sleep on the back seat. “Yes. He’s a little drunk so I thought he should stay the night in my house.”

Sanghyuk’s aunt agrees after lots of assurances from Jaehwan, and he starts the car as soon as he ends the call.

“Tell me if you’re going to puke.” Jaehwan puts Sanghyuk’s arm around his shoulder and brings him inside his house. Sanghyuk only grunts in response, and as soon as they reach the bathroom, he quickly opens the toilet lid for him. He can only rub his back, scrunching his nose.

After Sanghyuk’s finished, he wipes his face with a wet towel and brings him to his bed.

“Why did you drink so much?” Jaehwan whispers, carding his fingers on his hair.

“Jae – hwan –” Sanghyuk opens his eyes a little, looking at Jaehwan with a gentle smile on his.face. “It’s you.”

“Yeah, it’s me.” Jaehwan replies, handing him his glass of water from his bedside table. “Drink this before you sleep.”

Jaehwan pushes him down the bed to let him sleep, finally deciding to occupy the couch for the night. But even before he can stand up, a hand is tightly wrapped on his wrist.

“Don’t go.” Sanghyuk whispers, tugging Jaehwan closer to him. “Don’t go, please. Don’t leave me.”

“I’m not leaving. I’m just going to sleep on the couch.” Jaehwan tries to remove his hand from his wrist, but Sanghyuk still doesn’t let him go, pulling him until he falls on top of him.

“No, please. Don’t go.” Sanghyuk sobs, wrapping his arms on his shoulders. Jaehwan’s heart skips a beat. “I missed you so much, Jaehwan. It’s been hard for me. I don’t know what to do anymore.”

“Sanghyuk –”

“I like you too, Jaehwan. I’m sorry if I took so long, please don’t go.”

Jaehwan can only chuckle as a response, burying his face on Sanghyuk’s neck. He’s drunk, alright, but he sounds so sincere it’s not that hard to believe him. His heart begins to thump faster, and he can also faintly feel Sanghyuk’s.

He pulls away, and he cups Sanghyuk’s face with his hands. Again, there are tears on the other’s face that just makes the confession a lot realer. “I’m going to stay here, don’t worry. And we’ll talk tomorrow, okay? Good night, Sanghyuk.”

Sanghyuk nods and grins at him before dozing off. Jaehwan smiles back, leaving a chaste kiss on his forehead. He then goes on Sanghyuk’s side, wraps his arm around his middle and pulls him closer to him.

He’s definitely going to have a good night sleep.

  

***

 

Sanghyuk wakes up with a tolerable throbbing on his head. The first thing he sees when he opens his eyes is a familiar face he’s been looking for weeks.

He’s here, in Jaehwan’s arms, the other sleeping with his lips parted slightly. Sanghyuk remembers almost everything, from how he got drunk until Jaehwan brought him home. Unfortunately, he faintly remembers the drunk confession he also did last night.

Jaehwan is holding him so tight, even when he’s asleep, and the sudden rush of his emotions made him wrap his arm around Jaehwan too, chuckling as he nuzzles his neck.

It wakes Jaehwan up, and he laughs too when he realizes what Sanghyuk is doing, his voice husky with sleep. “You’re okay?”

“I’m fine. My head hurts a little, but it’s okay.” Sanghyuk replies. He should have done this before, hugging Jaehwan. He’s soft, and Sanghyuk wonders if he likes cuddling.

“I assume you remember everything you told me last night.” Jaehwan says, pushing him off him. Sanghyuk is reluctant to let go, but he knows they need to talk. “I’ve already let you go twice. Don’t think you can still escape from me again.”

“I know.” Sanghyuk sits up, and he leans on the headboard. Jaehwan is still on his lying position, looking up at him. “I’m the one who kept on pushing you away.”

“Why?”

Sanghyuk sighs, looking down at his lap. It’s too early for this kind of talk, but he knows there’s no right time for this. Jaehwan deserves to know why, at least. It’s up to him on what he’s going to do after this. “Because I’m insecure? I mean, I’m not that kind of person you can find interesting. I also don’t know how relationships work, so what if it fails? I’m really scared, Jaehwan.”

He avoids Jaehwan’s eyes then, choosing to look at the wall on his left. It’s quiet for a long while, so he speaks again.

“We also lost contact. You don’t call me anymore, and it drives me insane. Everyday I’ll just stare at my phone, waiting for you to call me. I want to do it, I want to hear your voice so bad, but fear always beat me up to it. What if you reject me this time? I don’t know how to deal with it if it happens.”

Jaehwan is still quiet. Is he right about everything? Did he catch Jaehwan red-handed? He’s about to speak again, deciding he should go, and there are tears threatening to fall from his eyes. But Jaehwan suddenly climbs to his lap, holding his face with his two hands as he forces him to look at him.

“You’re an idiot.” Jaehwan whispers, but it rings on Sanghyuk’s head like a gong. “Idiot, Sanghyuk. You’re such an idiot.”

“Are you done insulting me?” Sanghyuk huffs, his hands unconsciously landing on Jaehwan’s hips.

“We’re both idiots, actually.” Jaehwan says. “I stopped contacting you because I don’t want to force myself to you. I don’t want you to think that you should reciprocate my feelings. You’re too nice to break someone’s heart.”

“You’re an idiot.” Sanghyuk says. So he’s not the only one who’s doing all the pushing away. He laughs when he sees the pout on Jaehwan’s lips.

“And you’re not boring, Sanghyuk. I don’t care if you’re boring or not, because you make my life colorful.”

Sanghyuk blushes at the cheesy remark, pinching Jaehwan’s waist. The other yelps, but then his expression changes into something serious, looking at him through his eyes.

“We’re going to make this work, okay?” Jaehwan says softly, leaning closer until their faces are only a few inches away. “No more what ifs this time, Sanghyuk. Understand?”

Sanghyuk nods, looking down at Jaehwan’s lips, then back at his eyes. He wants to kiss him now, but he has to patiently wait.

“Say it again.” Jaehwan says, almost breathlessly. “That you like me too.”

“I like you too.” Sanghyuk mumbles. “No, I’m falling in love with you.”

That’s Jaehwan’s cue, and he swoops down to catch his lips in a sweet and longing kiss. Sanghyuk clutches at Jaehwan’s shirt, kissing back even though he doesn’t know how. But Jaehwan just tilts his head and opens his mouth a little, so Sanghyuk chooses to follow him. That only earns a soft moan coming from Jaehwan, and he wants to hear it again so he presses closer, his hands reaching up to tangle his fingers on his hair.

Jaehwan pulls away to catch his breath, his lips swollen. He’s panting hard, staring at him like he can’t believe it happened.

“You’re my first kiss. And my second.” Sanghyuk says then, smiling so widely. It only adds fuel to the fire as Jaehwan groans out loud, and when he tries to kiss him again Sanghyuk covers his face with his hands. Jaehwan frowns at him cutely, and he can’t help but pinch his cheeks. “Now that we’re finished confessing to each other and made out, can I take a shower? I still reek of alcohol.”

  

***

 

It’s a sunny day today, a perfect time to have a picnic with Sanghyuk. He’s been waiting at the university’s parking lot for almost thirty minutes, waiting for his boyfriend to come out of his classes. He doesn’t like waiting, but he can wait patiently if it’s Sanghyuk.

It has been three months since they started dating, and it only gets much better as days pass. They’ve always enjoyed each other’s company, except this time there are some changes.

Jaehwan can lace their fingers together anytime and anywhere he wants, and he can hug him and kiss him when it’s just the two of them alone. Sanghyuk now tells him about his frustrations at school, and also the concerts and shows he’s been dying to watch with him. Sanghyuk is also extra clingy when he’s tired and sleepy, and he’s really sweet especially when he cooks for him.

Jaehwan still doesn’t like Hongbin, and Sanghyuk hates it when he becomes a little bit more annoying than usual. Jaehwan is still Jaehwan, and he’s thankful that Sanghyuk accepts him for who he is. He couldn’t ask for more.

There’s a knock on his door, and he smiles at his boyfriend waving at him from the outside. He removes the lock, and Sanghyuk pulls the car door open.

“Did you wait that long?” Sanghyuk asks, climbing into the passenger seat. He looks like he’s in a good mood, a smile never leaving his handsome face. He probably got a very high grade on his exams. He’s sure Sanghyuk is going to tell him everything at their picnic date later.

“Yes, but it’s alright.” Jaehwan says. Sanghyuk is about to fasten his seat belt when he stops him to do it himself. He gets a peck on his lips from Sanghyuk, and now he can’t stop grinning.

“You’re clearly asking for it.” Sanghyuk says, and he doesn’t push him away when Jaehwan leans in to leave a chaste kiss on his lips. “So what did you bring for the picnic?”

“Hmm, I bought chips, canned sodas, candies, and more chips.”

“That’s really unhealthy, Jaehwan.”

“My boyfriend has been cooking healthy meals for me ever since we met. So I think it’s fine if we eat a little junk food for today.” Jaehwan says, glancing at Sanghyuk who’s rolling his eyes at him. “You still love me, right?”

Sanghyuk snorts at that. “Unfortunately, I do.”

Sanghyuk lets him hold his right hand as he carefully drives to the park. They still have a very long way to go – their relationship is still young – but Jaehwan is looking forward into his future with Sanghyuk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you reached the end!!! thank you for reading~! i know i'm really lacking but i hope you enjoyed reading this as much as i enjoyed writing this~ the fic was supposed to be longer but i got really busy and now everything seemed so rushed i think you all noticed that :( also, thank you for the comments!!! i read it all but i never got the time to reply i'm so sorry :( i want to write another short one-shot for this au so if given the time i will! thank you again! :)

**Author's Note:**

> comments are really, REALLY appreciated!!! you can also mention me on twitter @_jhwny :) thank you!!!


End file.
